


captivate me before I breathe

by lady-serendipity (JenZz)



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - After College/University, Alternate Universe - Information Technology, Clubbing, Cooking, Demisexuality, Dirty Talk, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Grinding, M/M, Public Sex, Size Kink, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-20 21:30:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21063506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JenZz/pseuds/lady-serendipity
Summary: Prompt #1719: Yixing is about to turn thirty and his family is starting to pressure him to find someone to be with, but Yixing hasn't dated anyone in years and all he can do is ask one of his friends to accompany him to the next family dinner and try to appease his mother. His perfect plan falls apart when he finds out that his friend, Kyungsoo, has been crushing on him for the longest time.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this OP! I've always wanted to write a fake dating!au, thank you for giving me the excuse to <3

“_I worry about you_,” Yixing groans into his glass of ice, formerly a rum and coke. He glares at it as if it embodies his nagging mother. His mother that he loves, but is exasperating at the same time. “She's saying it literally every time I call now.”

Lu Han pats his shoulder consolingly before knocking back his own drink. It's happy hour at their favorite Charlottesville bar on a Friday night. They're in their usual corner, dressed like they're young again in white tanks and ripped skinny jeans. Namanana is one of the few bars left these days that's still got velvet upholstering, so the noise level even when it's at its busiest is tolerable. Well, barely. A few chairs are pushed back to form a dance floor, but the night is young and only a few girls are dancing at the moment.

A horde of football jocks flood the bar next to the two, and now Lu Han has to half-shout his reply to be heard over their loud bro-y chatter. “You're the only son of a mostly traditional Chinese family and your last relationship was what, ten years ago? It's about time the pressure is on. Trust me, I know.”

According to their parents, at nearly-thirty and well-over-thirty (Lu Han looks ten but don’t let it fool you), they should be settled down with kids. But instead they're like this place, unchanged in the decade since _their_ college days. Most undergrads simply stay in town after graduating from the University of Virginia and they're no exception. Yixing works in UVA's Office of Information Technology, and Lu Han at the Office of Advancement. Lu Han's face has always been his money maker—their favorite joke for his ability to secure donations.

Yixing orders another rum and coke and then turns to glare at his best friend. “Are you or are you not on my side?” he asks, arching an eyebrow.

Lifting his hands in defeat, Lu Han replies, “I'm always on your side, Xing… which is why I'm obligated to tell you, it's a losing battle. I'm barely fending off my parents and _they're_ all the way in China." Lu Han takes a sip of his whiskey sour and lets out an _ah_ of content. "'Sides, at least they accept you being gay?” 

Yixing thanks the bartender when they shake a new rum and coke into his glass. “I'll cheers to that,” he relents, clinking his newly filled glass with Lu Han's. He distantly remembers a time that alcohol was gross to him, but only distantly. The working life will do that to you.

"I need you to make your mom happy or else she won't keep packing you the good stuff and I'll go starving," Lu Han whines, wrapping an arm around Yixing's shoulder. "Look at these skinny wrists!"

Yixing rolls his eyes. "She won't stop packing food for you, don't worry. I have it on good authority there's two freezer bags of dumplings with your name on them."

Lu Han clasps a hand to his heart. "I'm so glad I got adopted. Oh hey! When's the next time you're going home?"

Home for Yixing is only an hour and a half drive away or two and a half by public transit. Yixing usually goes every other month, so…. "I'm planning on heading up for midwinter break, the week after my birthday. Make Yifan cover my tech shifts then, they'll be reduced anyway with the kids on break." He narrows his eyes at Lu Han. "Why?"

"I know this is cliched as fuck," Lu Han begins, and pauses for dramatic effect. 

"But…?" Yixing says, eyeing him warily.

"You wound me, have my ideas ever led you astray?"

Pretending to count on one hand, Yixing says, "Well, there was that time with the broom closet and the fire hose—"

"That was one time!" Lu Han complains and waves it away. Ignoring Yixing's counting, he continues, "So… how about a fake boyfriend?"

Yixing stills to stare blankly at Lu Han. "A what."

"Hey listen, it's a good idea," Lu Han says. "You can get some practice in these like six weeks before break, fake dating, then take them home. Boom. Proof you're back in the game."

"And after?" Yixing rolls his eyes before knocking back his drink. Obviously he needs to catch up to where Lu Han is, if he's spouting this nonsense.

"Then you can 'break up' with them and go back to your priesthood for another ten years. Foolproof."

Yixing sighs. "That's probably the stupidest idea you've ever had, and you've had some pretty bad ones." 

"Hey, it might even get you laid," Lu Han shrugs. When Yixing opens his mouth to protest, Lu Han frantically waves. "Yeah yeah, I know you don't need sex but Xing, I kinda take your mom's side on this."

Closing his mouth, Yixing then expels a long breath. "You're on my mom's side and my side?" he asks dryly, but relents. "You're impossible."

“Speaking of impossible, here comes _trouble_!” Lu Han sings to the tune of ‘I Got a Boy’ by SNSD, putting down his drink. 

Yixing turns to see who he's referring to, and grins too. “Baekhyunnie!” he shouts, pulling him in for a hug. As usual, Baekhyun's smoky eyeliner is the highlight of his looks tonight, complemented by red skin-tight skinny jeans that do wonders for his butt. Yixing pats said butt appreciatively, earning him an air kiss from Baekhyun. “It’s really been too long.”

Giggling, Baekhyun props his elbows up on the counter. “It really has. Hey barkeep, can I get two waters?”

Yixing gasps dramatically. “Does this mean…?”

Baekhyun grins. “Yep, he's outside parking the car. Somewhere. Hey hyung!” he directs this at Lu Han, who's already pulling Baekhyun into his own arms. 

“Baekhyunnie, tell Xing that he needs to get a boyfriend soooooon or else his mom is going to marry him off,” Lu Han exclaims into Baekhyun’s arms. 

Shoving at Lu Han’s arm, Yixing opens his mouth to complain but is interrupted by a low voice. “Always a violent drunk, why did I come?” Yixing turns around to pout at a laughing Yifan, who puts up his arms in joking defense. He's wearing a lame tropical button down and dad jeans that only look good on him because of his tall frame. “Kidding, don’t kill me.”

“Baekhyun, you’re my only friend,” Yixing complains, "the rest of the world is against me."

"Don't worry," Baekhyun replies, flagging the bartender down. "You'll always be my number one. Shots for four, please!!"

Yifan's whining is interrupted by another person that says, "I'm glad I just missed the shots train."

"Kyungsoo!" Yifan wails and drapes himself over the newcomer, who's dressed in a simple black T-shirt and black jeans. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes but lightly pats Yifan on the back.

"There, there. Hi everyone," Kyungsoo manages to say before getting glomped by Lu Han. 

"Kyungsoo and Yifan," Yixing smiles broadly, "the two biggest introverts are here! We've got to party harder than ever!" 

Baekhyun cheers to that as he hands over his credit card to the bartender in exchange for the now five glasses of shots. Kyungsoo tries to escape but is forced into the first round of shots - "to Yixing's mother!"

Yixing hates all of them.

As the resident lightweights, Yixing, Lu Han, and Baekhyun start off the dancing as Kyungsoo and Yifan watch. Yixing loves his friends, loves dancing dirty with them, and loves that they understand that Yixing doesn't actually want to fuck them despite what his hips are doing. 

At some point Baekhyun drags Yifan in, and Yixing takes Yifan's recently vacated spot next to Kyungsoo. Sweaty and thirsty, Yixing asks for water. After taking a sip, he puts his mouth close to Kyungsoo's ear to ask, "How's your night going?"

In the darkness of the bar, Yixing doesn't notice the way Kyungsoo shivers, the way his ears burn red. It takes a moment before Kyungsoo turns back to Yixing and says, "It's okay." Well, more yells than anything because the bar has outright morphed into a club.

"Need more alcohol?!" Yixing asks, but Kyungsoo shakes his head no. 

"I drove," he explains, and the conversation stops there. It's not a bad silence. Yixing angles his body back to the dance floor, but his peripheral is focused on Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo Do. Jet black hair, intense eyes under thick eyebrows, and full lips, fuller than Yixing's own. Lean but muscled, shirt sleeves comfortably hugging nice biceps. Not that Yixing is paying particular attention or anything. If Yixing remembers correctly, he'd joined their group after graduation as Yifan's boyfriend, having graduated two years after their posse had. Kyungsoo had been skinnier, shyer, but his sharp tongue and witty humor had Lu Han and Yixing in tears soon enough.

Though Kyungsoo and Yifan had broken up years ago, they remained on good terms. Such good terms, in fact, that Kyungsoo had introduced Yifan to his college roommate Baekhyun, who’d moved back to the area after finishing his nursing degree. Baekhyun ended up weaseling his way into their hearts too.

"See something you like?" Kyungsoo's voice cuts through Yixing's reverie. Startled, Yixing realized that in his alcohol-induced haze he'd swiveled in the barstool to stare at Kyungsoo, who's smirking and raising an eyebrow. 

"Wanted to… um… see if you were really… having… fun," Yixing replies slowly, feeling awkward. "I didn't mean to be staring, really."

"Now you're hurting my feelings," Kyungsoo replies dryly. "Not gonna go back and dance?"

Yixing wants to give Kyungsoo a taste of his own medicine. "Tired of my company already?" he pouts, but smiles when Kyungsoo rolls his eyes.

"No. You don't have to stay though. I’m having fun observing." Kyungsoo gives Yixing's shoulder a little push. "Go dance some more. I know you want to."

Catching Kyungsoo's hand, Yixing tugs on it lightly. "Come on, won't you join?" But Kyungsoo is adamant in his refusal.

Yixing returns to the dance floor and finds Yifan and Baekhyun making out, and Lu Han dancing with a girl who's just as good as him. Another guy joins Yixing, swaying his hips to the music, and Yixing gladly begins to grind against him. He catches Kyungsoo's sight and has the sudden urge to lick his lips and grin wolfishly. Kyungsoo simply raises an eyebrow and takes a sip of his drink.

What if the guy dancing with him was Kyungsoo? Yixing bets that Kyungsoo is actually a good dancer, would move with the same intensity he brings to everything he does. What if these hands were his, strong and firm….

Huh. Yixing blinks. He'd never really thought of Kyungsoo that way. Blinking again, the thoughts drift off as he blends back in with the crowd. Out of Kyungsoo’s sight, out of mind.

_____________________

Yifan is of course Baekhyun's ride home, and Lu Han had already vanished with the girl from earlier. It's late enough that the little public transit that exists has already stopped service for the night. Yixing is about to accept a ride from Yifan when Kyungsoo catches him. "I can drive you, if you, um, want?" he asks, hesitant. "Baek should go straight home, early shift and all."

Yixing yawns and it's all the same to him, so they bid farewell to the others. 

The ride is smooth - not many drivers out once they clear the college town premises - and Yixing is almost nodding off when Kyungsoo asks, "How is your mother? I know we toasted to her and all."

"She's well," sighs Yixing, but launches into his typical tirade: "I love her to death and I know she worries but if I hear one more thing about how I ought to be in a relationship…." he finishes with mock strangling himself.

Kyungsoo snorts. "Asian mothers," he replies with a long-suffering tone.

They drive in silence for a while. Yixing steals glances at Kyungsoo's profile, so focused on the road. The orange lights of the road throw the planes of his face in stark relief. Handsome. Kyungsoo is so handsome. Lu Han's suggestion rises, unbidden, to the front of his mind: _how about a fake boyfriend?_

Kyungsoo would be the perfect option, right? Yifan and Baekhyun had each other, and his mother knew Lu Han too well to ever believe they would be in a relationship.

The car pulls to a stop at a red light and Kyungsoo clears his throat. Yixing flushes at being caught staring. Again. "Something on my face?"

"Would you be my boyfriend?" Yixing blurts, still feeling drunkenly reckless, and then splutters at himself. Kyungsoo's eyes widen in surprise, and something else. Not a no. Yixing decides to barrel on. "Fake, of course, my mom's been bugging me about that relationship and, well…" Yixing's voice trails off. 

Kyungsoo's face has gone carefully blank. They're nearing Yixing's neighborhood now, and Yixing fidgets in the suddenly uncomfortable silence. Why'd he have to go and fuck up everything? Why—

"What would being a fake boyfriend… entail?" Kyungsoo asks, throwing the car in park. They're in front of Yixing's house.

Playing with the hem of his shirt, Yixing says, "Coming to the next family dinner. During the midwinter break. Nothing big, really, then we can say something like ‘we broke up’ and then I can go another ten years without anything romantic." He's babbling at this point. "And you know Asian American family dinners—"

Kyungsoo places a hand on Yixing's thigh and squeezes, causing Yixing's mind to abruptly empty and his mouth to swing shut. "I'll… think about it, okay?" Kyungsoo murmurs, making eye contact with Yixing. Something crackles in the space between them, and Yixing's throat feels parched. "Good night."

"Good… good night," Yixing croaks, patting Kyungsoo's hand awkwardly. Kyungsoo chuckles and lets go, leaving behind a hot brand on Yixing's skin. His fingers are so broad. "Thanks for driving me. Sorry for the babble, forget this ever happened if the answer is no?" Yixing hops out of the car.

"If it makes you feel better," Kyungsoo calls out of the open door, "it's not the worst idea?" Yixing hmphs and sticks his tongue at Kyungsoo, then slams the door shut. If Kyungsoo can joke about it, then Yixing hadn't majorly fucked up. That's good at least.

_____________________

Yixing doesn't even remember falling asleep but waking up is a miserable experience. His mouth tastes like death and disaster, meaning he hadn't even brushed his teeth. Gross.

Something to his right is screaming… he dimly registers his phone and ignores the call. But the ringtone begins again and groaning, Yixing picks up. "Hello?"

"I'm in." It's Kyungsoo, and Yixing has no idea what he means.

He opens his mouth to respond, yawns instead, and then has to quickly swallow down the nausea. When he's finally in control and not dry-retching, he says, "What?"

"...never mind, I'm on my way over. The toilet's not too far, if you hurry." Yixing is already lurching out of bed. He makes it just in time to tip his head over the edge.

Some interminable time later, when Yixing is still hugging his toilet, he feels a soothing hand on his back. "You feeling better yet?"

Yixing nods weakly and then frowns up at Kyungsoo, who's looking cute in a black cap, a baggy black shirt, and sweatpants. “How’d you get in?”

Kyungsoo blinks down at him. “You told me the front door code password a long time ago. For some party or something. And you didn’t bolt the door.” Yixing’s face must still look vacant, because Kyungsoo follows up with, “It’s a relatively safe neighborhood, but you should still be more careful. What if I had bad intentions?” He unexpectedly ruffles Yixing’s hair, and then offers a hand. “Can you stand?”

Staring at the hand as if it might bite him, Yixing takes a breath. “I… think so…” he replies shakily, and lets Kyungsoo pull him up. Standing face to face, Kyungsoo is slightly shorter than him but his strength is undeniable. Yixing wishes he felt better, so that he could better understand if whatever’s stirring in his chest is emotion rather than nausea. 

Then Kyungsoo wrinkles his nose cutely and pulls him to the sink. “Mouthwash, brush your teeth,” he says as he hands the items to Yixing. “I’ll go cook breakfast.”

“Wow, it’s like you’re my boyfriend. Or my mom.” The words are out of his mouth before he can stop them, but Kyungsoo simply chuckles and leaves the room.

Yixing stares at his reflection. The bags under his eyes are pronounced, his hair is a bird’s nest, and his general feeling is still one of death. _Well, at least Kyungsoo is used to me_, Yixing shrugs and begins to try to piece his life together. 

Face washed, breath minty, and skin moisturized, Yixing is feeling a bit more alive when he walks into the smell of sausage, eggs, and biscuits. 

What makes him stop and pause is Kyungsoo in Yixing’s bright yellow bee-patterned apron. That apron had been collecting dust in a corner because Yixing sucks at taking care of himself and orders out whenever he can because he’s too busy to cook. But this is… really nice. 

So nice, that Yixing automatically moves to back-hug Kyungsoo. To his surprise, Kyungsoo pats Yixing on the head and continues as usual. Not that Kyungsoo is opposed to cuddling, he hugs people, but he usually shoves people off after too long. Baekhyun, case in point, is usually sprawled on the floor after a thirty-second hug. Yixing shrugs internally. Maybe Baekhyun gets annoying and Yixing doesn’t? He hugs Kyungsoo tighter. “Thank you, Soo, you didn’t have to.”

Kyungsoo pauses, and then finishes cooking the last of the toast. Oh yeah. Yixing doesn’t have a toaster. “I didn’t have to, but I wanted to. I'd do it for you, fake dating or not,” he replies quietly. “Speaking of, let’s talk about that? After breakfast.”

Yixing nods and begins to dig in. With the first bite of food, Yixing already feels his hangover receding. "This is the best meal I've had in years," he tells Kyungsoo with feeling, and enjoys the pink dusting on Kyungsoo's cheeks.

"It's really not that hard…" Kyungsoo murmurs.

They fall in an easy banter, and Yixing's glad he chose Kyungsoo of all his friends. This could actually work. He could kiss Kyungsoo in gratitude.

"You're staring again," Kyungsoo's voice cuts into his thoughts.

Frowning, Yixing shakes himself out of it but groans at the tiny bit of nausea still plaguing him. "Sorry. This is just… the nicest thing anyone's done for me." Yixing winces. "I mean my friends are great but…"

Kyungsoo laughs. "We have the same friends. I doubt any of them can really cook besides Lu Han. I have no idea how Yifan and Baekhyun survive without me."

"Ah," Yixing sighs, "Yifan really lost something special when you guys broke up. Good thing you're 'mine' now." He gets up to clear the plates and misses Kyungsoo's expression. A silence falls as Yixing starts to wash the dishes.

Eventually Kyungsoo joins to help dry the dishes, despite Yixing's numerous protests. When the last dish is done, Kyungsoo says, "If we're going to do this, we need to know each other better and lay out some ground rules. Midwinter break is in a few weeks…." He looks around the room. "Do you have a whiteboard or something?"

Grabbing a towel to wipe his hands, Yixing says, "I have one right next to the dining table, ah don't mind what's already on it." He sheepishly watches Kyungsoo pick up his whiteboard full of little dinosaur scribbles. 

"I don't mind," Kyungsoo says, examining each dinosaur with a small smile. "It's really cute, like you." Yixing's heart stutters and he feels his cheeks grow warm. 

"You're such a charmer," Yixing whines, coming over to prop his head on Kyungsoo's shoulder. He can feel Kyungsoo's deep chuckle, and something warm in his chest resounds in harmony.

Without jostling Yixing, Kyungsoo shuffles forward until they’re finally both on the couch. Yixing's arms wind around Kyungsoo's waist in the process, seeking warmth in his slightly cool house. Kyungsoo uncaps the marker and begins to narrate what he writes.

"Rule… one. Keep backstory simple."

Yixing frowns. "What do you mean by that?"

"We met through mutual friends and eventually decided to start dating," Kyungsoo explains. "Anything more complicated would be hard to keep straight."

"Nothing straight about us," Yixing laughs and Kyungsoo bops him on the head.

"Lame," he says but his smile gives away that he's not actually annoyed. "Rule two?"

Yixing can't think of anything, and after some silence passes he realizes why. He plucks the whiteboard out of Kyungsoo's hands. "We don't really need ground rules, Soo," Yixing says, putting it aside. "I trust you'll take care of me."

He likes the play of expressions over Kyungsoo's face, surprised, pleased, and something he can't quite put his finger on. "I will," Kyungsoo promises, voice low and doing all kinds of things to Yixing. "I just wanted to figure out, um, how to know you better." He bites his lip, a rare display of uncertainty for Kyungsoo.

Yixing hums. "To fool my family? I guess my mom's pretty discerning so…." 

"Well," Kyungsoo says slowly, "I'd like to take you on a few dates then. That way we can get to know each other better, naturally."

"That sounds perfect!" He beams at Kyungsoo. "You're so cute to get so concerned, it'll only be the one big family dinner. The rest of the time it'll just be my parents."

Kyungsoo shoves at Yixing's shoulder. "I'm not cute, I just want to make sure we do this right. Anyway," he says, checking his watch and sighing, "I've got to go run some errands. Let's have our first date next weekend?"

"Fake date," Yixing corrects, and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes.

"We're never gonna fool your family with that attitude," Kyungsoo says dryly. He gets up, extricating himself from Yixing's hold, and Yixing feels colder already. He's always been an absent-minded cuddler, and somehow Kyungsoo is letting him be overly cuddly. 

Yixing shakes the thought out of his head as he follows Kyungsoo. At the door, he's about to say goodbye when Kyungsoo suddenly spins to face Yixing. Letting out a quizzical noise, Yixing’s eyes widen as Kyungsoo gets closer and closer, until he pauses a hair’s breadth from kissing Yixing. “I thought of another rule. If you fall for me, then just let me know, yeah? I don’t want this to stop if we’re compatible after all.” 

Then Kyungsoo kisses Yixing before he can respond, a quick but firm smooch that turns Yixing’s legs into jelly. It really has been ten years since he’s been touched by another person, maybe that’s why, right…?

Kyungsoo pulls away, smiling sweetly before closing the door behind him. The noise startles Yixing into falling onto his butt. What has he gotten himself into?


	2. Chapter 2

Yixing laughs when Lu Han enters the twenty-four-hour Waffle House with sunglasses on, wrapped up in a winter jacket, scarf, and hat to battle the early fall weather. "You're always such a diva," Yixing says, still laughing as Lu Han takes a seat across from him and begins to shed his layers. They both know Yixing's immune to Lu Han's glare but Lu Han tries anyway. 

"Shut up, why do you look unscathed?" Lu Han whines. Neither of them bother to look at a menu because the staff knows their usual orders by heart. "I look like a truck rolled over me." 

"The sex was that good?" Yixing deadpans.

Lu Han lowers his sunglasses and smirks. The effect is ruined by the obvious bags under his eyes, so Yixing snorts. "You betcha. Her name's Xiaotong, Xiaotong Guan." He sighs. "She's so beautiful and so sexy and—"

"And a little young for you?" Yixing cuts Lu Han off because he loves his best friend but Lu Han is an oversharer at the best of times and he has no interest in hearing about the sex. Yixing also dimly remembers thinking the girl looked like jailbait. Though to be fair, so does Lu Han.

Lu Han scoffs. "Excuse you, she's got a baby face like me. She's a grad student, third year." He leans closer. "And the no dating students thing only applies to faculty, not staff like us. So we good." Sitting back, Lu Han re-adjusts his sunglasses. "Anyway, how are you looking so chipper? You're usually a wreck."

"I am not," Yixing protests. "Not really, anyway."

Something in his tone must catch Lu Han's attention, because he suddenly shifts forward in his seat. "Did you finally let someone wreck you last night?" 

Yixing shoves Lu Han back, cheeks feeling hot. "Shut up, we're in public!" he hisses, and when Lu Han opens his mouth again Yixing interrupts, "And no, not exactly…."

Lu Han sighs in mock disappointment. "You never take my advice to fuck it out of your system. Works like a charm."

Ignoring this, Yixing fiddles with his napkin before blurting, "I decided to do the fake dating thing."

Yixing has never seen Lu Han's eyebrows shoot up so high. "_Really?_ Who?" Horror settles on Lu Han's face. "It's me, isn't it?"

"Fuck you," Yixing says with no heat. "I've brought you home enough times for my mom to know it's purely platonic. Though she's said something about ‘Lu Han is close enough to a daughter-in-law.'" 

He smirks when Lu Han's face falls. "And here I thought she loved me like a second son."

"The daughter she never ha—" Yixing dodges a kick, laughing. "It's um. Kyungsoo."

Lu Han freezes, mouth agape. "Kyungsoo? As in, came out with us last night Kyungsoo? Yifan's _ex_ Kyungsoo?"

Yixing frowns. "But Yifan's going out with Baek—has been for almost five years now. They're practically married."

Sighing, Lu Han props his elbows on the table just to snatch them back when their food arrives. "Finally, I've been starving." He thanks the waiter with a grateful grin and begins to dig in. Yixing follows suit.

After a few moments, Yixing says, "Kyungsoo seems like the perfect choice." He watches as Lu Han's eyes go blank, going over the list of people they know.

Then Lu Han sighs and scarfs down the last of his waffle supreme. "You should talk to Yifan about it. I don't even know why they broke up but it made him sad for weeks. Don't you remember?"

"Of course I'll talk to Yifan. As soon as Baekhyun lets him out of bed." Both of them roll their eyes. The only downside of Yifan dating Baekhyun is that now due to Baekhyun's oversharing tendencies, Yixing and Lu Han know far more than they ever wanted to know. Sigh.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're doing something in the dating scene. Even if it's fake."

"Aww," Yixing coos at Lu Han, "you're concerned about me."

"Of course I am, you dipshit," Lu Han flutters a hand at him. Then he props his head in his hand. "I dunno, it just feels like you're too comfortable."

Yixing frowns. “What do you mean by comfortable?”

"I just meant that you're at the same job, at the same university, with the same friends. Don't get me wrong, I love you and I'm trying to say this sounds like a step in the right direction. After you talk to Yifan." 

"Alright, I will." Lu Han motions for the bill, and Yixing gets prepared to fight for it. "I'm paying this time, ge!"

"Like fuck you are!"

_____________________

Sunday night, Yixing still hasn't called Yifan. And Kyungsoo hasn't texted him yet. He sighs, leaning back on his couch and staring at his contacts. Yifan's name is saved under "Krease Wu," an inside joke from when Yifan went by Kris during freshman year. Ironically, his name is right above Kyungsoo's.

After all Lu Han said yesterday, Yixing had been busy worrying about the ways he could possibly be hurting his friend, even now. Why is Yixing always so impetuous? Rationally, he knows Yifan probably will be okay with it. Probably. Right?

He catches himself before another downward spiral can set in and shakes himself out of it. Only one way to find out. Yixing knows Yifan likes dragging Baekhyun to bed around 10, so it's now or never. He swipes right and anxiously waits though the dial tones.

_"Hey Yixing! What's up?"_

"Oh," Yixing says, wincing at the way his voice wobbles, "not much. Is this a good time?"

_"Yeah, I'm just finishing a movie with Baekhyun and Kyungsoo but I've already watched it so…."_

"Oh really," Yixing says, biting his lip. He needs to spit it out before he loses his nerve. "YifanI'mfakedatingKyungsoo."

_"Huh?"_

Shit. Yixing starts babbling, "You know what my mom's like, bringing Kyungsoo home would probably get her off my back. But I wanted to check in with you since you used to date Kyungsoo and I don't want to—"

_"YIXING."_ Yixing jumps slightly. _"Sorry, I know there's no stopping you when you're like this… I'm totally okay with that."_

Sitting up on the couch, Yixing says, "You-you are?"

_"Yeah, Kyungsoo actually talked to me about it yesterday morning. I do appreciate you checking in with me too."_

He sags with relief against his favorite cushion, and hugs it. "I'm glad you are okay with it… Lu Han made me feel like a douche for deciding without thinking about you," he mumbles into the cushion.

On the other end, he hears Yifan chuckle. _“That’s Lu Han’s responsibility as the annoying best friend to both of us. Don’t worry about me. I’m long over Kyungsoo.”_ There’s a pause. _“I’d worry about you more, actually.”_

“Why?” Yixing wonders. “Kyungsoo is so…” he searches for a word that describes Kyungsoo, but can only lamely come up with, “great.”

_“He expects honesty and is blunt in turn. You’re a little spacey. Just make sure you don’t accidentally hurt him, okay?”_

“Aw, Yifan talking about communication. Cute,” Yixing coos into the phone and giggles when he hears Yifan growl.

_“Shut up. Forget I said anything. Anyway, gotta go, I’ll talk to you later!”_

“Bye!” Yixing says with a smile on his face, and sends Kyungsoo a string of waving and happy emojis. 

He smiles when he gets Kyungsoo's response: “hello and good night to you too.”

_____________________

Over the next week, Yixing begins to get more texts from Kyungsoo. With every text, Yixing has to suppress the strange urge to giggle. Kyungsoo is simply so to the point, every word written for a purpose.

ksoo: meet at your house, Saturday noon  
xing: a hint? :3  
ksoo: food

Yixing chuckles. Fine. He'll be hungry by then anyway.

His doorbell rings promptly at noon. Yixing dashes down the stairs, yelling, "Coming!" Hopping on one foot and then the other, Yixing grabs a jacket and flings the door open. "I'm glad you used the doorbell this time, I—"

He blinks. Kyungsoo is bundled up in a loose sweatshirt and jeans, thick-rimmed glasses framing his wide eyes. His hands are stuffed in his pockets, and he looks - "Cute," Yixing says without thinking, and then his mind catches up to him. "Ah sorry, I forgot you don't—"

"I might be able to forgive you if you hold my hand," Kyungsoo interrupts with a small smile, holding out his hand. Yixing bites back another “cute” and intertwines their fingers.

It’s a beautiful fall day for a walk. Yixing had always been leery of dates because of people who liked to fill up the silence with chatter. But this is… really nice, holding Kyungsoo’s hand and listening to the quiet ambiance of the weekend.

Food turns out to be a hole in the wall Korean BBQ near campus. Yixing looks around in wonder. "I've seen this place but I've never actually been inside," he marvels, sitting down in a booth. He takes a selfie with Kyungsoo still cutely bundled up, and Kyungsoo flashes a small smile, holding up the V sign.

"Really?" Kyungsoo asks, handing him the menu when Yixing's put his phone down. "Baekhyun would drag me here all the time because I'd grill for him. He’d sit right next to me and chew in my ear until I pinched his neck."

Glancing over the menu, Yixing chuckles. "Sounds like Baekhyunnie. Um, the cheaper buffet looks good."

Kyungsoo nods in approval. "Soju?"

They did walk over so… "Sure, I trust you to pick. Peach sounds good though."

"Peach it is." Kyungsoo waves over the waiter, who rushes to their side. "Chanyeol, we're getting the usual."

"Back again, Soo!" Chanyeol exclaims, and gives them an exaggerated salute. "Aye, aye!" 

The waiter runs away, and Yixing is left blinking. "Is he…?"

"Yes, he's always like that," Kyungsoo chuckles, setting up the grill. In no time, the side dishes emerge. Chanyeol places them haphazardly around the table, and Yixing smiles as Kyungsoo huffily rearranges them so that they’re neat and aligned. They try a little of everything, and Yixing exclaims at how tasty some of the dishes are. “It reminds me of home,” Kyungsoo agrees.

“Do you miss it? Being so far?” Yixing asks. Kyungsoo’s parents are on the West Coast, if he remembers correctly.

Kyungsoo shrugs. “I made my decision, settling down here. The time difference means I can stay up later to talk to them, and we talk pretty often.” He smiles at Yixing. “The nagging is easier with distance.”

“Touche.” The meat arrives, less haphazardly this time. Chanyeol points at each of the meats, more for Yixing’s sake, before running away again. With wide eyes, Yixing watches Kyungsoo deftly place the meat on the grill. Kyungsoo’s face of concentration is adorable, a slight frown between his eyebrows as the steam fogs up his glasses. Kyungsoo pushes at the glasses as they slip down his face. “I don’t see you wearing glasses that often,” Yixing comments offhandedly.

“Hmm?” Kyungsoo asks, before registering what Yixing had said. “Ah, I can see mostly fine without them. I just wanted to be able to see your admiring face as I masterfully handled the grill.”

That surprises a laugh out of Yixing. “Oh? Do you enjoy the view, Master Griller Do?” 

“If only my plan didn't have a fatal flaw,” Kyungsoo sighs dramatically at his fogged-up glasses before finally taking them off. “I’ll have to settle for a slightly blurry but otherwise perfect view.”

“Oh stop it,” Yixing says, feeling his cheeks go pink. “You’ll make my gigantic head grow even larger.”

It’s Kyungsoo’s turn to laugh. “I like complimenting my boyfriends. Indulge me.” The meat sizzles between them, letting off a fragrant smell. Yixing focuses on the meat so he can quiet his suddenly traitorous, thundering heart.

“Fake boyfriends included? I’m a lucky guy,” Yixing says.

Kyungsoo shrugs, the edges of his full lips subtly turned downward. “Like I said, indulge me.” Picking up the tongs again, Kyungsoo starts doling out the cooked pork, setting the next meats to grill before constructing a lettuce wrap. 

Watching him, Yixing decides to open his mouth like a baby bird. Kyungsoo’s right, they should be acting more like the real deal. “Feed me, boyfriend,” he demands, and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes.

“In Korean culture, usually the older one feeds the younger.” Kyungsoo holds out his lettuce wrap with his chopsticks anyway, and Yixing gratefully chews. The flavor is rich and complex, and Yixing hums with delight. 

He creates a less artfully constructed but good enough lettuce wrap, and holds it out to Kyungsoo. Swallowing the rest of his bite, Yixing says, “Then let me feed you, dongsaeng.” Kyungsoo rolls his eyes but leans forward to take the bite. He notes how soft Kyungsoo’s lips are as they close around Yixing’s fingers, but the sensation is gone as quickly as it came. 

Despite the inefficiency, they continue feeding each other lettuce wraps, though Yixing grows more mischievous with each bite. He nips at Kyungsoo’s fingers, and Kyungsoo glares at him. He retaliates on the next bite, licking at Yixing’s fingers.

Finally, they’re too stuffed to continue. Chanyeol drops by the table and tuts at the few leftover pieces of meat. “Kyungsoo, you’re usually so good about this. By the way, hi, I’m Chanyeol.”

Yixing waves. “I’d shake your hand, but my hands are pretty greasy,” he laughs, and groans. “I’m so full, laughing hurts.”

“You’re a growing boy, Chanyeol, you can help us finish,” Kyungsoo suggests. 

Chanyeol bats his eyelashes at Kyungsoo. “Feed me?” That earns him a jab on the apron, and Yixing watches Chanyeol go down. 

“Brutal. I hope you never savage me like that,” Yixing quips, winking at Kyungsoo. 

“I would never,” Kyungsoo smirks, and leans in, “unless you asked for it.”

“O-kayyyy, I’m going to get the bill!” Chanyeol loudly exclaims, already recovered, and leaves. Yixing giggles and Kyungsoo’s ears are red. 

It’s a _good_ date. Yixing hasn’t had so much fun in ages.

_____________________

It’s a less good week, and Yixing is just waiting for the weekend again. Thanks to two certain people, the team he leads with Yifan—Sehun, Jongin, Jungkook, and Yugyeom—all know he’s dating someone. His team is full of bratty tall people on a good day, and armed with this knowledge, they’ve been insufferable. On Tuesday, Yixing walked into an office decorated with little hearts made of red post-it notes and an upside-down chair.

The only good thing about the week is Kyungsoo’s texts. Yixing opens them up and smiles at them. They’re not even anything cheesy. Yifan insists on peeking over his shoulder and then complains that these texts as normal as fuck; that Yixing looks creepy when he smiles like that. In lieu of answering, Yixing throws pens at Yifan’s stupid face. He’s gotten pretty good at beaning Yifan in the nose. 

ksoo: I liked last weekend.  
ksoo: thoughts on this upcoming weekend?  
xing: let’s do my house again!  
xing: making dumplings~  
ksoo: sounds fun. When should I get there?  
xing: Friday 3 PM!  
ksoo: good, that way I won’t have to deal with Baek whining about not getting invited  
xing: lol. You can bring some home to them  
ksoo: not if we eat them all. I will wow you with my ability to eat.  
xing: I eagerly await

The texts are pretty par for the course, but Yixing just likes the feeling that someone’s paying attention to him. That someone’s anticipating seeing him.

Maybe he’s been living alone too long.

Of course, 3 PM means that his entire team whoops when Kyungsoo shows up. “The boyfriend’s here! This means we get to go home early!” Yixing hears Sehun crow from the office that he and Yifan share. 

Yixing peeks over his computer at the open office space, just in time to see Jongin smack Sehun on the head. “Fake boyfriend, you dumbass. Also, you always go home early on Fridays.” He tips his head apologetically at Kyungsoo. “Sorry for his idiocy, you can go ahead.”

“Thanks Jongin,” Kyungsoo says, ruffling Jongin’s hair before heading towards Yixing. As he approaches, he raises an eyebrow at Yixing. “You told everyone?” Yifan had already gone home for the day, Baekhyun’s shift at the hospital having ended early too. Honestly, Yixing’s not even sure why Jongin and Sehun are still there. Jungkook and Yugyeom had already begged early leave, citing dance practice.

Yixing sighs. “Correction, _Baekhyun_ told everyone. He shouted at the top of lungs about how happy he was that I was finally ‘getting some action.’” He drops his head in his hands. “Yifan, bless his heart, reminded him that it was all fake. For the entire team to hear. There’s now bets being made and… the less I know the better.”

Kyungsoo walks over and rubs Yixing’s shoulders. “That’s alright, that means I can come get you at lunch and no one will bat an eye. Better than lying.”

Yixing melts into Kyungsoo’s touch. “You’re right. It’s not the end of the world.” He raises his voice, “Alright, you guys can leave!”

“Yay!” Sehun’s voice is the loudest and they hear the rest of the team leave.

Kyungsoo stops his ministrations, and Yixing rubs his hand. “I liked that, why’d you stop?” Yixing says, looking up to see what’s distracting Kyungsoo. Ah. He rips the hearts off of the buttons on his VoIP phone. “Shit, I thought I got those.”

“Evidently not many calls today,” Kyungsoo says, voice laced with mirth. “I didn’t peg you as a hearts decorator.” He pauses, and then continues, “Actually, maybe I should’ve. You’re very cute like that.”

Yixing swats at Kyungsoo. “If I can’t call you cute, then you can’t call me cute. I’m an old manly man, I’m almost thirty.” He flails his hand at the trash can but curses when the damned stickers stay stuck to his hand. “No, this is probably Jungkook’s work. He looks so innocent but is actually the worst prankster of the lot.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” Kyungsoo says, and reaches out a hand. Yixing cocks his head at it before realizing what it's for. He laces his fingers with Kyungsoo’s and lets Kyungsoo pull him up. “Let’s go home, ok?”

“That sounds nice,” Yixing mumbles, and quickly shuts his screens off before walking out the door with Kyungsoo. 

The air has a slight chill and the sense of dampness. Yixing wraps an arm around Kyungsoo’s and they walk at a brisk pace. “Feels like rain,” Kyungsoo says, looking up at the sky. Clouds hang low and dark, threatening.

“Better walk fast then,” Yixing says, and they walk faster. A few blocks from Yixing’s house, the skies open up. Letting go of Kyungsoo’s arm, Yixing instead holds his hand as they run for Yixing’s house. Teeth chattering, Yixing punches in the code and unlocks the door so they can scurry inside. “Sorry I forgot my umbrella,” Yixing says, “I didn’t even check the weather.” He hands Kyungsoo a towel, and Kyungsoo accepts it gratefully, patting down his clothes. The sight is kind of silly, Kyungsoo in nice work clothes with a large towel swallowing him whole. 

“That’s alright,” Kyungsoo says, snapping Yixing out of his brief reverie. He hurriedly continues toweling his own hair. “I could’ve driven us both but I decided to take a chance on the shuttle bus today.” 

“Want any of my spare clothes?” Yixing offers, throwing his towel on the railing of his staircase. 

Kyungsoo checks how wet his clothes are before shaking his head. “I’ll be fine.” Moving to the kitchen, Kyungsoo says, “What ingredients do we need?” Yixing’s kitchen is nice, sizeable. He loves cooking and hosting for his friends, so he’d purposefully chosen a house with a more modern kitchen, marble countertops and a large island for extra counter space.

“I prepared the dough this morning, so…” Yixing trails off as he pulls the dough out of the refrigerator. Poking it lightly, he hums with satisfaction. “Perfect. Have you made dumplings before?”

“I’ve helped my mom make mandu, they’re pretty similar,” Kyungsoo says. Yixing smiles at him, and Kyungsoo’s ears go slightly pink. Interesting. “I’d say I’m alright at it.”

“Okay, get the dumpling skins started while I make the filling.” Grabbing a large bowl, Yixing waltzes around the kitchen, first dumping in the ground pork, then chopping up a large bundle of chives. Retrieving the sauces, he mixes the ground pork thoroughly before slowly adding the chives. He almost forgets the egg, skipping to the refrigerator to quickly grab one and beat it so it can be added to the mixture. 

Taking a break, Yixing wipes his forehead and glances up. Kyungsoo quickly looks back down, and Yixing grins. Walking over, he perches his head on Kyungsoo’s shoulder. “Wow, dumplings and mandu must really be similar! These are great.”

“They’re okay, some of them came out strangely triangular,” Kyungsoo says apologetically. 

Yixing waves a hand. “I always say that it all looks the same in your stomach. My mama would disagree, but that’s alright.” He cocks his head at Kyungsoo, who’s now smiling at him. “Were you watching me make the filling?”

“Just noting we do things very differently. I have all the ingredients out before doing anything. But watching you with your smile and genuine enjoyment… it makes me happy.” 

Yixing’s brain short-circuits. The words are so affectionate, they catch him off-guard. His chest warm, he replies, “Ah… okay. Thank you?”

Kyungsoo laughs, the sound rich like dark chocolate. It’s rapidly becoming one of Yixing’s favorite sounds, he doesn’t know how he never noticed it this much before. “You’re welcome. I think I’ve made enough for now, show me how to fold them?”

“Okay!” Yixing maneuvers them so they’re both standing at the island. He demonstrates on one and laughs at its lopsided shape. “This is good enough, if they leak in the pot I call it flavoring for the water.” 

Kyungsoo copies his movements, but his dumpling looks much more professional. He even adds in a few ruffles. Yixing looks at him with betrayal. “I thought you wanted my help learning!”

Kyungsoo lifts a flour-covered hand over his laugh, before clearing his throat. “I liked how excited you were to teach me,” he says earnestly. “I didn’t realize how haphazard your folding was.”

Now Yixing’s giggling too. “I can’t possibly put ours next to each other,” he laughs, looking at his dinky dumpling next to Kyungsoo’s beautifully shaped one. “You should’ve just become a cook.”

“I like my job at Facilities,” Kyungsoo says, though he’s slightly red from the praise. Yixing lo—thinks that’s cute. “I like getting my hands dirty and doing physical work.” They start again, Yixing trying harder to make his look nice but not succeeding.

They talk about their workplaces, because despite working at the same university, Yixing doesn’t know much about what Kyungsoo does. He finds out that Kyungsoo’s crew consists of all older men who love to dote on Kyungsoo. “Why do I get stuck with annoying brats but you get men falling over each other to do things for you?” Yixing complains good-naturedly. He actually wouldn’t trade them for the world. His team may be bratty, but they’re all good at heart.

“Maybe that’s your type?” Kyungsoo wonders, and Yixing emphatically shakes his head.

“No way. Though I certainly seem to attract them,” Yixing sighs. A strange silence falls. Eventually, they finish folding a veritable army of dumplings. “Oops, we made quite a lot.”

Kyungsoo laughs. “Not a bad thing. We can freeze them all and eat them later.” Pointing at the extra filling, Kyungsoo suggests, “Let’s make meatballs and bake them? That might be yummy.”

“Never tried that before, but that should work.” Yixing turns around and puts a pot on to boil. Kyungsoo quickly prepares a tray of pork and chive meatballs.

To pass the time, they watch The Great British Baking Show. Kyungsoo turns around every few minutes to stir the dumplings and turn the meatballs; he’s seen every episode several times. Yixing’s stomach rumbles, embarrassingly loudly, making Kyungsoo giggle. “It’s not my fault! I try not to watch this show because it makes me even hungrier,” Yixing grumbles, and Kyungsoo runs a comforting hand over his back.

When everything’s done, Yixing tries the meatballs first and moans in delight. “Fuck that’s delicious. Holy shit. I think you discovered something new,” Yixing says. Kyungsoo has an interesting look on his face but it’s replaced by another before Yixing can pinpoint it. 

Maybe Yixing imagined it, and forgets it when Kyungsoo lifts a dumpling to his mouth. He watches it with pleading eyes, and after blowing on it, Kyungsoo offers it to Yixing. Yixing blows on it too before accepting it. “Mmm, I outdid myself with the dough too.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes turn into crescents as he laughs.

After basically inhaling dinner, they migrate to Yixing’s cushy couch and binge the rest of the baking show. Impromptu, Kyungsoo pulls Yixing back to the kitchen to recreate one of the desserts. They’re positively stuffed at the end of the night.

“I might have to roll home,” Kyungsoo sighs, patting his tummy. They’re both lying defeated on the couch. Yixing’s lying half on top of Kyungsoo, careful to avoid the tummy area. 

“You could stay,” Yixing offers. “I have a spare guest room.”

Pondering it for a moment, Kyungsoo shakes his head. “Nah, I should go. I promised Baek I’d do something with him early tomorrow morning, and it would be a bitch to put up with his teasing if I show up in my clothes from today.”

Yixing laughs. “You can’t escape his teasing. He’ll always find something to torture you with.”

“The best I can do is fight him off.” Kyungsoo rubs Yixing’s sides and Yixing snuggles closer, liking the warmth. Eventually, Kyungsoo says, “You do have to get off of me for me to leave.”

“Noooo,” Yixing complains, but gets off and helps Kyungsoo up as well. “Thanks for coming over tonight. You doing anything next week?”

“Nope, not that I know of. What’re your thoughts?”

Yixing glares at the laptop. “Let’s binge the second season. I’m hooked, I want to hear every word of advice Mary has to offer.”

“Then we can eat the leftover dumplings too. Sounds like a plan.” 

They walk to the doorway, and suddenly Yixing is apprehensive. Are they going to kiss again? Yixing’s still not sure how he feels about the first one, but he knows his parents are going to expect them to kiss at least once. Worse, would Kyungsoo use tongue? He’s never had a good kiss with tongue before. His mind is racing and his palms suddenly feel sweaty.

Then Kyungsoo turns around, and they stare at each other for a moment. It looks like Yixing isn’t the only one who’s tense about this, but he can’t fathom why Kyungsoo would be anxious. Unless, he… Yixing waves away the thought. He trusts Kyungsoo, and this is fake anyway. Finally, Kyungsoo licks his lips and asks, “Can I kiss you?”

Blinking, Yixing blurts, “You didn’t ask last time.” Fuck. That just came out. “I mean, not that I didn’t—”

“I’m sorry,” Kyungsoo says, and scratches his head. “Yifan said you’re demi and explained what that meant, and I just mauled you with my lips—”

Yixing snorts and says, “Mauling is a little strong of a word. No, I’m glad you asked.” He holds Kyungsoo’s hand. “Really, it’s ok. I appreciate your apology.” He plays with Kyungsoo’s fingers. “Most people wouldn’t apologize.”

Kyungsoo’s quiet for a moment before saying, “Fuck most people. I’m happy just to spend time with you. If nothing sexual ever happens, I’m okay with that. I’d rather—" he cuts himself off, and Yixing’s not sure what he was going to say next. “Anyway, yeah.”

Studying him for a moment, Yixing can’t help but smile and lean in, pecking Kyungsoo on the lips. Kyungsoo looks up, surprise in his wide eyes. And something else? 

“For me, kissing without tongue still counts as platonic affection.” The something else dims slightly, and Yixing doesn’t like that. So he kisses Kyungsoo again. “Good night, Soo.”

Shoulders relaxing, Kyungsoo presses a kiss to Yixing’s palm. “Good night. I’ll see you next weekend.” He lets the door shut behind him, and Yixing is so confused. This is supposed to be a fake relationship, right? 

He runs upstairs and calls Lu Han to yell about confusing feelings and people.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning: smut is in this chapter. it starts with the club, you can start again at "A good morning indeed" if you want to skip!

It doesn’t hit him until Tuesday that it’s actually his birthday on Friday - the day he and Kyungsoo had been planning on hanging out.

He quickly forgets it again, because the day ends on an upsetting note. At 7 PM, he gets an emergency notification that some of the university servers have been hacked. Yixing rushes to the office to start the remediation process, pulling two all-nighters in a row. 

Those days pass in a blur, and Yixing shuts out the world by accident. He's not even sure if he even touches his phone, let alone charges it. It's only on bathroom breaks that somehow, he thinks of Kyungsoo and that they've at least had two good dates. Because this is definitely the beginning of the end.

This is the reality of Yixing's life. Work is usually easygoing at a university, but IT means that work comes first for Yixing, always has. His boyfriends had never understood, and always complained that he should at least have enough time to check his phone.

At least it’s fake with Kyungsoo. Maybe it’ll last at least until after dinner with his parents.

The rest of his team is wonderful and pours their energy into problem solving, though Yixing makes the kids work shifts rather than stay there the whole time. He's respectful of their lives; he's a bachelor with nothing at home but that doesn't mean they should end up like him. Maybe Yixing imagines a phone buzzing on his desk, but the thoughts melt away whenever he refocuses on his computer screen.

Yifan is nearly dead on his feet when they finally trace the source to a white hat hacker, thank fuck. Better than a malicious person stealing student records. However, the incident still points out glaring vulnerabilities in their system that Yixing and Yifan should’ve caught much, much earlier. 

It isn’t until Friday at 3:48 PM that Yixing and Yifan’s team finish the remediation, enough time for Yixing to dismiss everyone early. Including Yifan. “You have a boyfriend to go home to and fuck or be fucked by or something,” Yixing says, pushing him out the door.

“But you have—”

Yixing closes the office door on Yifan’s face. Yixing has a what? A fake boyfriend.

He is so tired, and he sinks onto the floor. Maybe Kyungsoo will make it quick and painless. Tell him that he needs someone to be there, not someone who lets work consume them. Somehow that thought hurts, but Yixing can't help thinking it. So many relationships, broken up over Yixing's inability to do something small like return messages. Yixing looks up at the ugly popcorn ceiling and is dismayed to feel a tear trickle down his cheek. 

Furiously rubbing at his cheek, Yixing hauls himself off the floor, and gets back to the logs. He wants to stay a little later to combat his paranoia that traces of the hacker’s bots remain in the system somewhere.

If Kyungsoo fake breaks up with him over a few missed texts, so be it.

A knock on the door startles Yixing so badly he falls out of his chair. The door immediately opens, and Kyungsoo rushes in. “Are you alright?” he asks, worry lacing his voice. 

Kyungsoo is painfully handsome in a dark green turtleneck sweater and black jeans. His hand feels nice on Yixing's back, and he feels weak. Why is Kyungsoo being so nice? Isn't he angry at him?

“Angry?” Yixing realizes he's blurted out his thoughts and cups his mouth. However, Kyungsoo simply furrows his eyebrows. “Why would I be angry?”

Swallowing, Yixing feels stupid but continues, “Because you’ve probably been texting me and I haven’t responded?”

“God, Lu Han told me what kind of assholes you’ve been going out with but—” Kyungsoo expels a short breath, and then breathes in deeply. “No, I’m not angry. Baek already filled me in on what was going on. And Yifan texted me that I needed to come pick you up and drag you out of the office.”

Yixing wilts in disappointment. It’s just because Yifan made Kyungsoo come, not because Kyungsoo actually wanted to or something. “You didn’t need to, I still need to check some things….”

“As your boyfriend, it’s my duty to drag you out of the office and demand you pay attention to me.” Kyungsoo draws Yixing into his arms, and Yixing relaxes, slumping into Kyungsoo’s hold. He smells so nice, and feels so warm in this soft cashmere sweater. “Anyway, I’m sure it’s fine. Yifan assured me you’ve done all you can. Let me take you home.”

Yixing finally feels the exhaustion catch up with him, and he breathes a long, deep sigh. “Okay.” It must be the exhaustion, because he finds himself mumbling, “Can I get a kiss?”

Kyungsoo draws in a short breath before pulling Yixing into his lap. Yixing finds his strength surprising, for such a small person. “Of course baby, you can get all the kisses.” Kyungsoo starts by kissing his mouth, but then showers his entire face with pecks. Forehead. Eyelids. Nose. Cheeks. Yixing feels almost shy with the sheer amount of affection. “I'd never be angry about something like this," Kyungsoo murmurs in between kisses. "Worried, yes, but never angry. You care so much, and you've done so well.” A sweet peck on the lips. "I'm proud of you."

“I… think I needed to hear that,” Yixing mumbles, before seeking another kiss on the lips. Kyungsoo keeps it sweet and chaste, and Yixing feels warm. “I’m sorry for not looking at my phone.”

“Like I said, it’s alright. But I did miss you. Isn’t that weird?” Kyungsoo laughs a little self-consciously. "It's only been, like, a few days."

Yixing’s heart stutters. “No… I think that’s sweet.” He sees Kyungsoo’s ears go red and the aforementioned heart does something crazy like swell five sizes larger.

“Anyway, let’s get off the floor of your office and get going.” With Kyungsoo’s help, Yixing manages to get up. But he stumbles, feeling light-headed. “Whoa. When’s the last time you ate something?”

Frowning, Yixing tries to remember. “Maybe in the morning?” As if on cue, his stomach grumbles. Kyungsoo laughs. “I’ll make us a snack at my place, you take a nap, and then we’ll go to yours?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

_____________________

Yixing feels like a human again after sleeping an hour. He knows the feeling won’t last too long, that he’s going to feel awful the next day. Eating something helped too, but he’s looking forward to dinner.

“You know, it’s my birthday today?” Yixing says absently.

Kyungsoo places a hand on Yixing’s thigh. He’s driving again, and Yixing has a brief sense of deja vu. Except now they’re fake boyfriends, not just friends of friends. “Was there something you wanted for today? It’s the big three-o.”

“I mean, I'd always thought turning thirty would be something big. But it’s too late to plan something now.” He shrugs and smiles at Kyungsoo. “A night in with you is good too.”

Kyungsoo flashes him a broad smile. "Okay. Did you miss me that much?"

"I…" Yixing says, voice trailing off. "I did. I thought about you. I usually don't do that."

He can hear Kyungsoo swallow and his hand tighten on Yixing's thigh. But they've pulled up to Yixing's house and the moment is broken. Kyungsoo gets out of the car and opens the door for Yixing. Chivalry isn't dead after all, Yixing thinks, amused as he holds Kyungsoo's hand well after needing his support. 

His house is dark and probably cold after not having been there for a while. He punches in the key code and opens the door.

And screams when the lights turn on and many people jump up and yell, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Loud party poppers sound from several directions. It's only because Kyungsoo catches and braces him that Yixing doesn't collapse to the ground.

He glances around with wide eyes. Lu Han, Yifan, Baekhyun, his entire work team… hell, at least twenty people he considered close friends once but who don't even live here are now standing in his hallway, beaming at him. "Come in, it's freezing outside!" Baekhyun says and everyone ushers Yixing in, out of Kyungsoo's arms and into his own house.

It turns out there had been a concerted effort among Kyungsoo, Lu Han, Baekhyun, and Yifan to make sure everyone got there. His once empty house is wonderfully full, easily accommodating them all, and his heart feels full too. There's a purple cake with a big Happy 30! written on it in loopy text, and Yixing has never felt so loved as the moment he blew out the candles and hears and see all of his friends cheer. For him.

Baekhyun finds him chatting with Kasper, an old dance friend who's in the area choreographing for a while and trying to cajole Yixing into performing again. "Excuse us," Baekhyun grins at Kasper and pulls Yixing aside. "Enjoying your party?"

Yixing nods enthusiastically. "Yes, thanks so much for helping with this, Baek," he says, hugging him hard. "I don't even know how you found some of these people, I was talking to someone from high school five people ago."

Baekhyun hugs back just as tight. "I'm glad you're happy," he says softly, and then pulls back. Studying Yixing but still cuddling him, he says, "Kyungsoo's gonna kill me for saying this but you really have to thank him for a lot of this." Baekhyun gestures around.

Widening his eyes, Yixing stares at Baekhyun. "But why?" he asks, perplexed. "It's not like we're dating for real."

"Not with that attitude," Baekhyun quirks an eyebrow at him, and then suddenly smirks. "Watch this." He draws Yixing closer and slips a hand onto Yixing's ass. What the—

"Byun Baekhyun I swear I will break your hand," Kyungsoo growls lowly, ripping Baekhyun's hand away. He winds a surprisingly possessive arm around Yixing's waist. "Does Yifan need to take you home?" Baekhyun holds his hands up in mock surrender before fleeing. "Is everything okay?" 

Yixing realizes Kyungsoo's talking to him now. He blinks and says, "Yeah, I'm alright. I'm having fun. I think… what was that?"

Kyungsoo honest to God blushes and Yixing thinks it's so pretty. "I'm sorry," he tries to withdraw his arm but Yixing holds it there. "I didn't mean to act like that, Baek just knows what buttons to push with me."

"Is my butt a button now?" Yixing teases, winding his arms around Kyungsoo's neck. He's feeling playful, he's feeling like he… wants to touch.

Oh? Yixing dances back before Kyungsoo can do anything. "If it is, it’s like a panic button because I’ll panic! Ahahaha," Yixing babbles and then runs away, thoughts racing. Had that feeling been sexual? Yixing's not sure, it's been so long since he's felt this way…. 

Another person moves to talk with him and the thoughts float away.

_____________________

It's well past midnight when Yixing says goodnight to Lu Han, Baekhyun, and Yifan. He hugs each of them. "Thanks again for helping put this together. I feel like a very special old man," Yixing jokes. He thinks Kyungsoo is cleaning up somewhere. "I should go tell Kyungsoo to stop cleaning."

Yifan rolls his eyes. "You try that," he says, "it's no use when Baek and I say anything." His eyes soften and he pulls Yixing into another hug. "I think you guys look cute together. I ship it."

"We're not—" Yixing starts but is interrupted by Lu Han.

"I'll share the photos with you so you have something to show your mom," he says, brandishing a photo on his phone of Yixing and Kyungsoo together. "Knowing you, you only took like two selfies but your mother will require evidence."

Right. "Have you been stalking me?" Yixing asks, shaking his head in faux disappointment. "I always knew you were obsessed—" he giggles when Lu Han shoves at him.

"You little shit," Lu Han rolls his eyes. "Happy birthday. Good night."

"Good night!" Yixing waves at all three before going to find Kyungsoo. 

To his surprise, Kyungsoo has dozed off on the living room couch, hands clutching a stained towel. Yixing gently removes the towel from Kyungsoo’s hands and throws it into his hamper. A sleeping Kyungsoo looks younger, but Yixing frowns when he sees the bags under Kyungsoo’s eyes. Was there something bothering Kyungsoo? 

Then Kyungsoo scrunches his eyes and opens them, staring directly into Yixing’s. Yixing feels like a deer in headlights, somehow having gotten closer and closer until he’s a breath’s width away. The seconds stretch into minutes before Kyungsoo finally says, voice gravelly with drowsiness, “See something you like?”

It’s so ridiculous Yixing giggles, trance broken. He kisses Kyungsoo on the nose and stands up. “I see my cute fake boyfriend taking a nap on my couch. There are more comfortable places to sleep, you know.”

Rubbing his eyes, Kyungsoo yawns and stretches. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I’ve a few other things to…” he yawns again before continuing, “tidy up.”

Yixing furrows his brows. He knows it’s past midnight. Kyungsoo doesn't actually live that close to Yixing. His apartment with Baekhyun and Yifan is on the other side of town, though only thirty minutes drive at this time of the night. It was fine to have Baekhyun and Yifan drive together, because they could keep each other awake. But Kyungsoo… Kyungsoo should….

"Stay," Yixing finds himself saying, and Kyungsoo looks up at him with surprise. "I mean… you seem tired and my bed's big enough and, um, we'll have to practice sleeping in the same bed when we go to my family’s." He snaps his mouth closed, to stop babbling.

Kyungsoo looks hesitant. “Are you sure?” He seems posed to say something else, but stops, waiting for Yixing to answer. Yixing simply nods, feeling strange about the offer. It feels like he’s offering something more than just staying over, yet at the same time, not.

Then another yawn escapes Kyungsoo and Yixing breaks into a fond smile. “Yeah, I’m not gonna let you drive like that.” He props a hand on his hips, teasingly saying, “Listen to the birthday boy, okay?”

Chuckling, Kyungsoo stands up and says, "Okay, okay. I didn't bring… a change of clothes though."

Yixing steps closer and places his hands on Kyungsoo's hips. "We're similar enough in size, you can borrow mine," Yixing grins. "Plus it's Saturday tomorrow, doesn't matter."

Rolling his eyes, Kyungsoo says, "If you insist, I'll look through your tank top and sweatpant collection."

"There's a spare toothbrush in the cabinet too!" Yixing inwardly cheers before catching himself when Kyungsoo disappears into his bedroom. This is just temporary, he reminds himself. He shouldn't get used to it. Then he realizes a potential problem. "Kyungsoo?"

A muffled "Yeah?" emerges from his bedroom.

"I like sleeping in boxers is that oka…" Yixing's voice trails off when Kyungsoo emerges in a baggy T shirt over skintight Calvin Klein boxer briefs. He tries to discreetly grip his countertop as all of his blood rushes downward. Fucking hell. So cute and so hot. God, he looks so big…. 

Yixing needs to stop this right now. They're only fake dating, it's not real. It’s not _real_. Okay, that makes him sad.

"These are a little tight," Kyungsoo frowns down at the briefs, and tugs at the elastic. Yixing's mind is utterly blank. He has no thoughts. "I don't know if I can even move—" 

Yixing runs into the bedroom before Kyungsoo can move much more, rummages at the back of his dresser and throws a pair of his baggiest boxers at Kyungsoo. "Try these I need to brush my teeth be right back," Yixing babbles before he sprints into his bathroom. He glares at his boner, willing it down. When that somehow doesn't work, Yixing decides to take a cold shower.

When he emerges, he finds Kyungsoo already under the covers, facing the wall. For some reason Yixing feels disappointed, which is stupid. There’s no reason to feel upset about the fact that Kyungsoo’s not facing towards his side of the bed.

As if sensing Yixing is thinking too hard, Kyungsoo mumbles, "I sleep better facing the wall. Come to bed, it's cold… I'll let you be the big spoon."

Yixing's heart is a puddle on the ground. “Who am I to turn down such an opportunity?" he teases and turns off the light before climbing into the bed as commanded. Throwing an arm and a leg over Kyungsoo's waist, Yixing whispers, "Good night." 

He falls asleep before he hears Kyungsoo's reply.

The sun is streaming when Yixing opens his eyes. During the night, Kyungsoo had turned and buried his face into Yixing’s chest. Yawning, Yixing draws back slightly because that can’t possibly be comfortable. Kyungsoo grumbles and moves closer again. “Too bright,” he mumbles, voice thick and rough and perfect.

Yixing’s heart doesn’t exist. It has melted and is now a puddle of goo. “Sorry I didn’t pull the curtains last night,” he says, his own voice slightly rougher from sleep.

"S'ok." Yixing wraps his arms around Kyungsoo again and they fall back asleep.

_____________________

The next few days, Kyungsoo slots into Yixing’s life even deeper. Every day he arrives at Yixing’s office at 5:15 PM, like clockwork, much to the delight of Yixing’s team. They all take it a bit easier now that their workaholic boss is forced to leave closer to on time than ever before.

Kyungsoo has also left clothes at Yixing’s place. It makes sense, it’s for the sake of their fake relationship, so they can learn each other’s habits. 

Thursday night, Yixing’s mother video-calls him on WeChat. “Why don’t you call more?” she scolds lightly, “I don’t even know if you’re coming home!”

Yixing scratches his head. “I’m sorry, Mama. I keep forgetting,” he admits sheepishly, and listens to her sigh. “I am coming home for midwinter break, don’t worry.”

“I will worry, you’re going to be taking the train all that way alone,” his mother sighs. “I don’t even know if you’re even eating properly. Aiya, this is why I want you to have a person, I worry about—” 

“Actually,” Yixing realizes, clearing his throat and stopping his mother’s fast and furious nagging train. “I think you should meet someone.” He hears the footsteps padding in front of him and looks up. 

Kyungsoo has taken to wearing Yixing’s loose shirts as pajamas, and it does horrible things to Yixing’s heart every time. He draws the ends of his own jacket around him and looks questioningly at Yixing. Then his eyes dawn in comprehension, and a resolute look settles on his face. Striding over, Kyungsoo smiles into the camera. “Hello, Zhang ah-yi. My name is Kyungsoo Do. I’m…” he glances at Yixing, who gives him a small nod. “I’m Yixing’s boyfriend.”

Yixing’s mother’s mouth had fallen open in surprise, but she quickly recovers. “H-hello Kyungsoo! Wah, Yixing you terrible child! Why didn’t you tell me earlier!”

“I would’ve if you’d let me talk,” Yixing complains, but it goes unheard as Yixing’s mother barrels on.

“Your name sounds Korean but your Chinese pronunciation is so good! Wah, and you’re so handsome, aiya, how did you even decide on our Yixing?”

Kyungsoo laughs, sounding shy and embarrassed. Yixing withholds the urge to hug him, but drapes an arm over Kyungsoo’s shoulders to bring him closer. For the video call. Obviously. “I’m not that handsome,” Kyungsoo replies, wrapping an arm around Yixing’s waist. “Yixing is much, much more handsome, and I know where he gets it from now.”

Holy shit Kyungsoo is smooth. His mother is screeching now. “Aiyaaa, Yixing you are bringing him home, yes? How long have you been together?” 

“We only just got together, but we’ve been friends for a while.” Yixing pecks Kyungsoo on the cheek. “He is very handsome, Mama, you will see better in person.”

“Good, I will see you both soon. Aunt Yi and Uncle Zhou will be there, and Lao Lao. It’ll be smaller this year. Ah, your father is saying we have to go. Call me soon, okay?”

Yixing doesn’t even get the chance to say goodbye before his mother hangs up. He sighs, and pulls Kyungsoo in for a proper hug. “She never lets me get a word in edgewise,” he complains.

“Hah, I think all mothers are like that,” Kyungsoo mumbles into Yixing’s shoulder. He breathes slightly on Yixing’s neck and Yixing is shying away. 

“Sorry, that’s sensi—aaaaaahh!” Yixing yells as Kyungsoo blows on his shoulder, hard. He pouts at Kyungsoo, who’s chuckling. “Meanie.”

“Come on, let’s go to bed,” Kyungsoo says, and takes Yixing’s hand in his. Yixing doesn’t even think twice before following him, feeling warm at Kyungsoo’s firm grip.

_____________________

Soon enough, it’s the Friday before break starts. Yixing is jittery all day, thinking about all the ways everything could go wrong. At 3 PM, Yifan drags Yixing’s chair away from his desk and dumps him on the floor. “What the fuck, Yifan,” Yixing says, getting up and rubbing his butt.

“Out. You’re distracting me,” Yifan says. “I already summoned your ride.”

“My-oh, Soo!” Yixing flings himself at Kyungsoo, who chuckles as he catches him. Yixing ignores the excited coos coming from outside the office—_did you hear that!_,_a nickname!_, _awwww_—and complains, “Yifan is being an asshole!”

“No, he’s just being a good friend. Thanks for the heads up, I’ll take him home.”

Yixing lets Kyungsoo tug him out of the office, wondering where they’re going to go. They end up back at his house, and make a simple dinner with whatever’s left in Yixing’s refrigerator. But Yixing’s nerves still jangle after dinner, and finally he asks, “Remember that club we went to?”

Kyungsoo places the last dish on the rack and wipes his hands clean. “The one where you asked me to be your fake boyfriend?”

Yixing swallows at the word “fake” - he had… almost forgotten it, with Kyungsoo being around so much. “Yeah,” he replies quietly. 

The silence stretches between them, and Kyungsoo looks like he’s about to say something but changes his mind. “What about it?”

Scuffing the floor with his bunny slippers, Yixing asks, “Did you want to go? I think it’d be good for be to dance off this anxiety. Oh, but you don’t—”

“Sure. I might even dance with you this time.” 

Yixing snaps his head up to look at Kyungsoo. His eyes are intense, and Yixing shivers. “I’ll hold you to that,” he says, “Let me get changed.” 

When he walks out, Yixing’s lounge outfit has been swapped out for his slutty club outfit. Black jeans that hug his muscled legs, a mesh shirt underneath a leather jacket… Yixing knows he looks hot. Kyungsoo’s appreciative once-over is just icing on the cake.

Or maybe it’s the whole cake.

“Should I change?” Kyungsoo asks, and Yixing gives Kyungsoo a long once-over too, returning the favor. Kyungsoo’s wearing a well-fitting black T-shirt, tucked into a pair of blue jeans. Simple, but so attractive. 

“No,” Yixing says, and barely suppresses the urge to kiss Kyungsoo.

It’s crowded inside the club, as expected of the Friday night before break, and Kyungsoo grips Yixing by the waist to keep him close. They start off with shots, because Yixing’s feeling reckless tonight. Then he whispers into Kyungsoo's ear, "A real boyfriend would dance with me."

Kyungsoo's arm tightens around him, possessive in a way that makes Yixing shiver with a strange delight. "Then let's dance."

It's hard to resist melting into Kyungsoo's arms. Kyungsoo is everywhere, everything to the beat of the pounding EDM. Soft strokes down Yixing's chest, hard grinding against Yixing's butt, hot grip still on Yixing's waist. Yixing is dizzy from it all.

Turning to face Kyungsoo, Yixing feels his mouth go dry as he takes in Kyungsoo under the neon lights. Teeth dig into his thick bottom lip as Kyungsoo moves to the music, eyes closed. As if drawn by magnets, Yixing cups Kyungsoo's cheeks. His eyes fly open, hooded with a sultry gaze Yixing has never seen before. 

Kyungsoo arches an eyebrow, as if daring Yixing to do something.

Powerless to defy such a command, Yixing leans in and kisses him, body rolling against him. If it were anyone else Yixing would say he doesn't want to fuck, just wants to dance.

The fire running through his veins, blood rushing downwards, tells a completely different story about how he feels towards Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo groans into Yixing's mouth, arms wrapping around Yixing's neck. Emboldened, Yixing runs his hands down Kyungsoo's chest, around his back to his glorious ass. Yixing has to bite back a moan when Kyungsoo rearranges them, roughly inserting his knee underneath Yixing's crotch. He feels desperate, wanton, shameless on the dark dance floor. He’s so close.

Then Kyungsoo growls in his ear, "Come for me," and grinds Yixing down hard on his thigh. Yixing makes sure to moan in Kyungsoo's ear as he shudders apart in Kyungsoo's arms, euphoria flooding his body as he comes. 

Falling limp, Yixing feels Kyungsoo gather him up and carry him out. "But I… wanted to dance more…" he murmurs to Kyungsoo, who shushes him.

"Let's take you back to the house, you can dance for me there baby." Yixing knows Kyungsoo feels his full body shudder, and kisses the smirk off Kyungsoo's face before he can say anything.

Kyungsoo's mouth is soft, so very soft. Yixing used to prefer sucking hickies but he can't help but return to Kyungsoo's mouth, over and over again. They probably scandalize their Uber driver, and maybe any of Yixing's neighbors that happen to be awake in the middle of the night.

Fuck them. Kyungsoo's lips deserve to be worshipped.

When they're finally indoors, Yixing cups Kyungsoo's erection and groans into the kiss. Kyungsoo's responding moan is a low, sweet sound, a sound that might haunt Yixing's daydreams forever. "I need you," Yixing whispers, voice husky with desire, "I need you in me."

Groaning, Kyungsoo mutters, "You'll be the death of me," and yanks Yixing to his bedroom. They fall on his bed, kissing as they struggle out of their clothes. Yixing grimaces as he pulls off his dirtied boxers. Laughing, Kyungsoo kisses his frown away. "Want me to get a towel or something?"

Yixing pouts, not wanting to stop but also feeling gross. "...yes," he decides, realizing he could continue in another way. 

When Kyungsoo leaves the room, Yixing lunges for his favorite bottle of lube and hastily squirts some on his fingers. He sighs at the intrusion of one finger, wiggling it around and impatiently inserts another. Fuck, it burns. Yixing reapplies the lube and more slowly works to a third, toes curling in the sheets. He wants to be ready for Kyungsoo, feeling himself clench on his own digits but wanting something bigger, something thicker. "Kyungsoo…" he whines.

"Shh, I'm here baby." A tongue curls into Yixing's mouth, Kyungsoo swallowing Yixing's little moans. "You really are going to be the death of me," Kyungsoo murmurs with an undercurrent of awe. "So good for me." 

"Yes, yes," Yixing sighs, inserting a fourth finger as Kyungsoo gently cleans away the dried cum from Yixing's skin with a warm towel. "Now get in me, hurry." Yixing removes his fingers and slathers Kyungsoo's cock with the remaining lube. He loves the way it feels in his hand, so hot and thick.

Kyungsoo hisses at the touch, but still manages to say, "Are you sure? No, ngh, no condom…?"

"You're tested, right?" Kyungsoo nods and Yixing pushes him on the bed. "So I see no problem—ahhhh," Yixing moans, lining himself up and sinking down on Kyungsoo's thick cock. It's been too long since he's had sex with someone and it's pleasure tinged with slight pain. Kyungsoo's hands fly to his waist, steadying and slowing his pace.

Yixing tries not to rush but it feels so good to be filled up like this, with Kyungsoo rubbing his skin comfortingly and whispering a steady stream of endearments. "You feel so good, baby. It's like a dream, having you on my cock and looking so good." Head tilted back, Yixing basks in the affection and sighs in satisfaction when he finally bottoms out. 

Yixing has to take deep breaths, waiting agonizing moments because he doesn’t really want to be extra sore in the morning but wanting to move already. Finally, Kyungsoo’s thick cock feels bearable, stretching him so full. Without warning, Yixing slides up and slams back down. Kyungsoo’s moans are musical. “I love having you in me,” Yixing sighs, riding him harder. “Fill me up so well, fuck me Kyungsoo, _fuck_.” 

Yixing cries out when Kyungsoo grips his hips and thrusts up just as Yixing slams down. “I’ll fuck you baby, fuck you right,” Kyungsoo growls and nails Yixing’s prostate. Stars burst behind Yixing’s eyes and he realizes he’s wailing. Yixing wants to say more but is reduced to chanting Kyungsoo’s name like a prayer. The sounds of skin slapping against skin and lube are the backdrop to their moans. 

Somehow Yixing is coming for a second time that night, weak spurts as his voice breaks and he falls on Kyungsoo’s chest. He musters the last of his strength to suck a hickey on Kyungsoo’s collarbone, and that’s what pushes Kyungsoo over the edge, a low moan joined by Yixing’s as he feels Kyungsoo’s ecstasy fill him up, warm and so deep.

Sleepy and satisfied, Yixing falls asleep like that.

He wakes up, thankfully clean, and loves the shift of bare skin on bare skin. Yixing had forgotten how much he loves waking up naked and cuddling someone he lo—cares about. In the night, Kyungsoo had rolled onto his back and Yixing had sprawled half on top of him. If he hadn’t felt all clean, he would’ve thought Kyungsoo had let them fall asleep like that, cock inside of Yixing. However, Kyungsoo’s cock is very much not inside Yixing, and he’d like to change that.

After a good yawn, Yixing maneuvers himself fully on top of Kyungsoo. He wakes Kyungsoo up with kisses all over his face and wiggling against him until they're both hard. Yixing keens when a finger teases at his entrance. "Good morning," Kyungsoo murmurs up at Yixing with a sleepy smile. "Someone's excited." The smile slowly, brilliantly, morphs into a smirk. "You're so, so good for me, right?" 

Two fingers sink into Yixing and he nods, moaning, "Yes, more," fucking back onto Kyungsoo's fingers.

Soon Kyungsoo has flipped them over and is thrusting his cock into Yixing's loose hole, sharp and urgent, pressing open mouthed kisses above Yixing's collarbone as Yixing encourages him on with breathy, broken pleas.

A good morning indeed.

_____________________

A not good afternoon. Yixing is panicking over his suitcase, staring into space with existential horror.

He had sex with Kyungsoo. Sex. He only really gets horny if he has feelings and…. Does Yixing have feelings for Kyungsoo? But it’s supposed to be fake. What if… Kyungsoo doesn’t feel the same way?

Kyungsoo had told Yixing to just tell him if he had any real feelings. Did he still feel the same way now? How would Yixing be able to cope if he doesn’t?

Yixing stares at his phone, panicking because he wants to call someone, talk to someone. 

“The Uber’s here,” Kyungsoo says, startling Yixing into almost dropping his phone. 

“Okay,” Yixing says, safely tucking his phone away. He gets up to follow Kyungsoo, lost in his own stormcloud.

He completely misses the worried glances Kyungsoo throws at him, falling into a fitful sleep on the train.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning: angst, smut in this one too

Someone is shaking his shoulder. “Hmm!?” Yixing shakes himself awake to attention, blearily focusing on Kyungsoo’s face. It’s… blank. He can’t tell what Kyungsoo’s thinking.

“We’re almost there,” Kyungsoo says softly. His lips quirk up into a little smile, but it’s definitely subdued. Kyungsoo raises a hand to his mouth and mimes wiping.

Yixing’s hand flies up to his face and finds drool there. Rubbing frantically, he straightens in his seat. “How embarrassing.”

Shrugging, Kyungsoo says, “Since we’re not using the word cute, I’ll just say it’s not embarrassing. At least you don’t continuously whine like Baekhyun does.”

It must be his drowsiness speaking, because Yixing finds himself saying, “Why are you still living with Yifan and Baekhyun?”

Kyungsoo studies Yixing for a moment. “The commute is short since it’s practically on the edge of campus. But that means it’s expensive, so I help out with the costs. Also, having lived with both of them before, I know we get along." It sounds almost recited. Kyungsoo probably gets the question a lot.

Yixing fiddles with his fingers. There's something green in the pit of his chest, maw open and gaping. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything," Kyungsoo responds almost instantly. "I don't want there to be any secrets, you can ask me anything and I'll answer to my best ability."

Feeling slightly reassured, Yixing asks, "Why did you and Yifan break up? You don't have to answer, but I… wanted to know."

He chances looking up and Kyungsoo's eyes are wide with surprise. "Yifan didn't…" then Kyungsoo breaks off and sighs. "Of course he didn't tell you or Lu Han." Checking the time - they're twenty minutes out from DC Union Station now - Kyungsoo starts to explain. "I truly care about Yifan. We were good friends from before we went out, and are better friends now."

Crossing his arms, Kyungsoo leans back. "But when we were going out, I felt myself and my world… contracting, almost? Yifan and I are both naturally antisocial. Sometimes that's okay, but… I'd find myself nagging at him for this that or the other." He runs a hand through his hair, a habit Yixing now knows indicates Kyungsoo is processing something.

After the moment drags a little too long, Yixing prompts, "What would you be nagging him about?" 

Kyungsoo shakes himself and continues. "Really stupid stuff. Like he should be washing the dishes more often, or cook once in a goddamn while, or go out…." Kyungsoo's voice trails off before continuing, "I didn't know any different because that's how my umma is towards my appa."

"Same here," Yixing murmurs, "you've been warned."

Chuckling dryly, Kyungsoo says, "Noted." He runs his hand through his hair again. "I never wanted to be that way though…." He pauses to look at Yixing, and something makes Yixing lean forward to pat his shoulder encouragingly. Something steels in Kyungsoo’s eyes, and he says, "When I met you, I realized I didn't have to be that way."

Startled, Yixing drops his hand. "What do you mean?"

Kyungsoo's eyes are sad now, but he continues regardless. "You have your flaws but I felt… something I'd never felt before, for you. I was always so endlessly endeared by everything you did. Like even this past month, watching you dance around the kitchen. If Baekhyun did that I'd be annoyed, because I don't trust him to not, um, fuck it up. But with you, it’s…" Kyungsoo shrugs.

Yixing's mouth is dry and his mind is racing. "But… you were still dating Yifan when you met me," comes out of his mouth. 

"Yes, and I wanted to be honest with Yifan and with myself. I told him I hated making him feel small when he should have someone who appreciates him with all their being.” Kyungsoo shifts in his seat, looking out the window at the darkening sky. “And that's Baekhyun. He's so good for Yifan, he brings out the fun playful side of him I could never reach."

"Does… Yifan know? About me?" Yixing wonders, but everything is clicking into place. Yifan's strange worry about Kyungsoo, Lu Han's concern…. 

"I never told him but he figured me out pretty quickly. I felt really bad, even though I was honest with him. But I couldn’t deny it.” Kyungsoo sneaks a peek at him but seems to chicken out, glancing away again. Yixing’s mouth is open, and he feels dazed. “I'd actually been planning on asking you out that… that day you asked me to fake date you." His lips twist downwards and he ducks his head. "I'm sorry, this isn't how I wanted to confess."

The train announces their arrival in DC and Yixing slowly gathers his stuff. When he stands up, he holds Kyungsoo's free hand, other hand clutching his suitcase. "Thank you for telling me. We'll talk more later, okay?"

Kyungsoo squeezes his hand.

Yixing's parents are in a car waiting for them outside. To Yixing's relief, his parents are more focused on beating the DC traffic than on interrogating them. As soon as they're in Maryland, however, his mother swivels in his seat.

"How was the trip? What do you do? How much Chinese do you speak? How did you meet Yixing? What—"

"Mom!" Yixing interrupts, holding Kyungsoo's hand again. Kyungsoo's palm is slightly sweaty and he's got his nervous owlish look. "One question at a time."

"Did I raise you to be so rude?" his mother chides him, but blessedly slows down. Yixing lets Kyungsoo speak for himself now, and he watches as Kyungsoo grows more confident. Soon enough, he has Yixing's parents chuckling at his dry humor. But they continue to hold hands until the car pulls up in the driveway.

"I'm going to take Kyungsoo up to our room!" Yixing hollers before beating a hasty retreat. 

"Dinner's in fifteen minutes!" his mother calls up the stairs as they haul their suitcases up. 

When Yixing is inside, he sees his bedroom as Kyungsoo must see it: utter chaos. There's a full bed shoved in the corner, swallowing nearly half the room. The walls are plastered half with Naruto posters and sheets of half composed music, and random stuff jumbles any remotely flat surface. There's barely enough space to unzip the suitcases. "... I'm sorry it's such a mess," Yixing mumbles, red-faced.

"When you live with the whirlwind that is Baekhyun, this isn't awful," Kyungsoo says. He's looking at the sheet music. "I didn't realize you composed."

Yixing hops onto the bed and pats the space next to him. Kyungsoo follows. "Not really any more. I once thought I'd be a musician, and actually majored in Music at UVA."

"What happened?" Kyungsoo asks, sounding genuinely curious.

"My minor in computer science was the only thing that worked out in getting me a job," Yixing shrugged. "Plus, Charlottesville isn't bad. It fits me better than the big city."

Kyungsoo scoots back until he’s propped up against the wall, and Yixing lies down instead of following suit. He watches Kyungsoo say, "Well, I do want to hear these some day. If you're willing to share."

“Okay.” They sit on the bed, and unlike the one other ex-boyfriend who had made it to this stage, Kyungsoo doesn't make weird side comments about his Naruto obsession. 

Ugh. He’s got to stop comparing Kyungsoo to his exes. Yixing can’t help it though. It’s so refreshing to have Kyungsoo here, in this bed.

He has to remember it’s all fake. Yixing’s heart sinks. Is it really fake? Especially after Kyungsoo had confessed… Yixing glances at Kyungsoo’s furrowed eyebrows, and swallows a sigh. Kyungsoo is probably still worrying about Yixing's weirdness that afternoon. It's not fair for Yixing keep it all bottled up, without letting Kyungsoo in. Not when Kyungsoo has been so open.

But does Yixing really want this relationship, or does he just want something? He couldn’t do that to Kyungsoo. But it’s true that Kyungsoo makes his insides ache in a weirdly good way. Yixing has never, ever had someone be so good to him.

Before he realizes what he’s doing, Yixing finds himself surging forward to press a small kiss to Kyungsoo's cheek. Kyungsoo turns wide eyes on him, cupping his cheek as if to keep Yixing's kiss there. "What was…?" Kyungsoo trails off, but Yixing can hear the hope in his voice. It gives him the courage to say what's on his mind.

"I'm sorry I'm stressing you so much and being weird." Kyungsoo looks ready to protest but Yixing shushes him with a quick peck on the lips. He wants to kiss Kyungsoo again, but stops himself because Kyungsoo looks overwhelmed by all the affection. “The past… twenty-four hours has a lot to process for me. I…" Yixing bites his lip. "I trust you with my body and I'm scared of what that might mean. I need to think about it. So… give me some time?”

Kyungsoo is about to answer when Yixing's mother raps on the door. "Okay," Kyungsoo manages before the door opens and ends the conversation. 

"Dinner!" Yixing's mother says, and her eyes twinkle at seeing them sitting next to each other on the bed, faces a breath’s width apart. Yixing wants to die of embarrassment, but his mother is flouncing away already.

"Guess I know where you got your mischievous streak from," Kyungsoo comments, and Yixing groans before pulling Kyungsoo up and out to the table.

Dinner consists of an extravagant three dish meal - all of Yixing's favorites, including Sichuan boiled fish, Changsha-style chicken soup, and hot dogs. "All of my favorite foods! Thank you Mama," Yixing says, helping put out utensils. Kyungsoo doesn’t comment on the strange assortment of food, but Yixing can see the fondness in his smile. 

He wants to kiss that smile, and barely refrains from doing so in front of his parents. He doesn’t want to act any more than necessary, and Yixing’s never been overly demonstrative in front of his parents. Forcing himself to sit down, Yixing starts to heap food on Kyungsoo’s and his own plate.

They tuck in and unsurprisingly, the inquisition begins. “How do you know Yixing?” 

“We’ve been friends for a while…” The conversation flows smoothly, as Kyungsoo charms both of his parents as Yixing knew he would. At this point, Yixing’s parents probably like Kyungsoo more than him. Yixing’s father certainly gets extremely excited talking to Kyungsoo about home renovation when he finds out Kyungsoo’s day job at Facilities. It’s just as well because Yixing had never been very interested. 

Yixing’s mother raises an eyebrow at him. Yixing quirks one back before leaning back and letting the sound of Kyungsoo’s low voice wash over him. He’s not sure how to feel about how easily Kyungsoo fits in, and a tiny voice that sounds like stupid Lu Han warns him he’s going to suffer at his parents’ hands if he breaks up with Kyungsoo. Fuck.

When they’re all done, Kyungsoo offers to do the dishes and Yixing’s mother is officially in love. “Maybe we should just adopt you instead and disown our son,” his mother jokes, and Yixing whines at her.

Laughing, Kyungsoo says, “No, I think your son is wonderful in his own way.” Kissing him on the forehead, Kyungsoo pushes up his sleeves to go to the dishes.

Yixing’s red in the face and his parents laugh at him.

_____________________

They don’t have much time to talk that night, falling fast asleep on Yixing’s bed because it’s much softer than the one he has in his current home.

Blinking awake at his mother’s insistent summons, Yixing groans when he gets up. “I always sink into this bed and never get up,” he says, watching Kyungsoo blearily blink at him.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get up again,” Kyungsoo agrees, and then yawns widely. Even though Yixing has shared a bed with Kyungsoo for the past few weeks, he always enjoys waking up next to Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo is always sleep-grumpy and cuddle-seeking in the morning, and Yixing loves his grumpy penguin.

Loves!? Yixing jumps out of bed when his mother yells again, and he gets up. Hesitating, Yixing drops a kiss on Kyungsoo’s cheek because he can’t help himself. “I gotta go see what she’s yelling about, you can sleep in a little longer.”

He dashes away before Kyungsoo can respond or drag him back into bed. “Mama, what’s up?”

“I have to go teach Chinese school. Will you and Kyungsoo be okay today? Breakfast is on the table, help yourselves.”

Yixing winces at the mention of Chinese school. He’d dropped out in fifth grade, but his mother had stayed and taught classes for extra money on Sundays. Hugging his mom, Yixing says, “I’m sure I’ll figure out something. When do you want us to be back?”

Yixing’s mother flaps her hand. “Be back by two, then you can help me prepare. Your father’s already eaten so don’t worry about him.”

As promised, Yixing drags Kyungsoo out to explore Rockville. He loves his little town on the edge of the DC suburbs, enjoying the way Kyungsoo takes in the lively town square. They spend an hour at the library by accident, each of them finding a book to get engrossed in. 

Before long, it’s time to head back. Kyungsoo is giving him space. He’s grateful. The mess in his head is taking a long time to unjumble, but Yixing will get there.

It turns out that 2 PM is dumpling preparation time. Yixing gets dumpling skin duty alongside his father, and gets to watch his mother coo at Kyungsoo’s beautifully wrapped dumplings. “Aiya, these are so beautiful. Your mother must have taught you well.” 

“She did. Yixing also helped teach me the difference between Korean mandu and Chinese dumplings,” Kyungsoo adds, grinning at Yixing. Yixing sticks his tongue out at Kyungsoo, still miffed at their difference in skill. They all start to chat about the differences between Chinese and Korean cuisine, and before long a veritable army of dumplings are done. 

Yixing’s mother makes sure they are all busy right until the others begin to show up. Yixing honestly had never been worried about this part, mostly because he knows they’ll all fall in love with Kyungsoo. Even his grandmother who didn’t speak any English managed to tell Kyungsoo to call her Lao Lao, through Kyungsoo’s minimal Chinese and Yixing’s translation. Yixing can tell that Kyungsoo picks up languages crazy fast, already improving by leaps and bounds.

Kyungsoo has them all in stitches from a funny story about Yixing and fish sticks. Yixing didn’t realize Kyungsoo still remembered that. Though it’s an embarrassing story, Kyungsoo still gazes at Yixing with such unabashed fondness that Yixing laughs along too.

He almost forgets that this isn’t real, but the thought douses his bones in bone-chillingly cold water, dampening his mood at random throughout the dinner. Something is nagging at the back of Yixing’s mind, something that he’s forgetting and can’t put his finger on. Luckily, Kyungsoo is the star of the night and Yixing can hide behind his light.

As dinner is winding down, Yixing excuses himself to start putting away some of the plates. His Lao Lao joins him, and pats him on the back. “You found a good one,” she says in Chinese, and Yixing grins at her in gratitude. She’s always been his favorite.

“Thanks, Lao Lao.” They don’t say much more, but Yixing doesn’t have to. Though he continues to wonder why he is still hesitating about Kyungsoo. His family likes him, but that’s not what’s bothering him.

Then what is?

_____________________

Strange dreams about a threesome with Baekhyun and Yifan make Yixing wake up in a cold sweat. He glances at the clock. 6 AM. Kyungsoo’s still sound asleep, so Yixing extricates himself from the blankets and throws on a thick overcoat. He barely remembers to grab his keysand phone before he tiptoes out the door.

Outside is still damp from the morning dew, and Yixing can finally breathe. What a weird dream… and Yixing realizes the missing piece.

He calls Baekhyun. “Hello?” Baekhyun warbles into the phone, way too bright for a Tuesday morning. “You’re never up this early, what’s up?”

“How are you so energetic?” Yixing yawns into the phone, rubbing his eyes. The brisk air is waking him up but his steps are still on autopilot. “I woke up and realized I should talk to you. And Yifan.”

“Oh? Well, you’ve got half an hour before my shift begins again. And you’re in luck, I forgot my breakfast today so Yifan’s bringing me McDonald’s right before then.”

Yixing makes a face. “You nurses eat so poorly,” he says, “why doesn’t Yifan bring you something healthier?”

Baekhyun’s laugh rings bright, even through the phone, and Yixing wakes up a bit more. “Kyungsoo’s not here, that’s why. Return him in one piece, please.” Yixing goes quiet. He realizes he’s walked to the local community garden that he sought as his solace, and sits next to the barren little water fountain. “He-hello? You there?”

“Yes,” Yixing says, “I was trying to figure out how to phrase what I wanted to say.”

“Ah, so this is about Kyungsoo. I was wondering when you’d panic.”

Raising his eyebrows, Yixing says, “Who says I’m panicking?” Baekhyun just chuckles, and Yixing sighs. “Alright, I’m panicking. He… well, I can tell it in chronological order.” He hears a noise of _go on_ through the phone. “I mean, we’ve been fake dating since that night at the club, and it’s been going… really well. He’s so, so sweet and attentitive.”

Baekhyun hums. “That’s Kyungsoo for you. And then?”

“And then you probably noticed he started staying over, because you know, practice.” Yixing picks up a stick and starts to drag it over the dirt between him and the fountain.

“Uh-huuuuh. Sure. Practice.”

Yixing wants to flick Baekhyun’s forehead. Damn phone. “You sound like Lu Han now. Anyway, right before we left, I’ve just been… feeling more feelings, and then I dragged Kyungsoo to the club.”

“He went?” The words are laced with surprise and admiration. “Damn, he’s more into you than I thought.”

“Wait, you knew?” Yixing pauses with the stick. 

A sigh from the other end. “Kyungsoo is pretty opaque to people who don’t know him well, but Yifan and I have known for a while. We, um, may have been pressuring him to ask you out.”

“But isn’t that weird!?” Yixing asks, straightening. “Yifan’s his ex! Why is he so supportive?”

The silence on the other end is followed by a slow, “Just because they’re exes…” Then Yixing hears a surprised yelp and hears, “Fuck you, you scared me! Well, Yifan’s here. You should really talk to him.” Then, from further away, “Honey, yell at your bestie for me, okay? Mwah.” Baekhyun hangs up on him, and Yixing stares blankly at his phone.

He sees some missed texts, and hurriedly responds:

ksoo: you ok?  
ksoo: you were gone, and your mom doesn’t seem worried, so I didn’t press  
xing: yeah she knows where I go, tell her I’m in the usual  
xing: I’ll be back in… thirty

His next text is cut off by a call. Yixing swallows. It’s Yifan. Accepting the call, he brings the phone back up to his ear. “H-hey.”

“Hey. You okay?”

Tears, out of fucking nowhere, start to well up in his eyes. “No, I feel like shit.”

“Did, did Kyungsoo do something?” Yifan asks, surprised. “Oh fuck, did he—”

“I’m sorry,” Yixing hiccups. “I’m sorry I ruined your relationship with Kyungsoo.”

A long sigh. “Goddamnit Kyungsoo. That’s not what happened at all.”

Wiping at his eyes, Yixing says, “But Kyungsoo says he fell for me and that’s why he had to break up with you.”

“He’s too nice,” Yifan grumps. “I wanted him to tell his side, so you would hear the truth. But that’s not what happened.”

Getting up, Yixing starts to pace. “Okay, stop being cryptic. What did happen.”

Yixing can imagine Yifan furrowing his Angry Bird eyebrows, screwing his face up in constipated concentration. “I’m trying to figure out how to best phrase this… well, Kyungsoo probably made himself out to be the bad guy.” Another hum. “Can you remember exactly what he said?”

“Um,” Yixing says, and Kyungsoo’s words float up in his mind. “He said he nagged at you all the time.”

“He had a point though, always. I’m not sure at what point I kind of just let him do everything because he was so much better. I was really wrecked when he broke up with me, and I… I did resent you for a while.”

Yixing sniffles. “I’m—”

“Don’t you dare apologize for something that’s not your fault.” Yifan’s voice is uncharacteristically sharp. “When I finally wised up to that, and that Kyungsoo and I weren’t good for each other, everything felt so clear. I wanted you and Kyungsoo to end up together, because he’s always doted on you. Everyone dotes on you. It’s hard not to.” Yifan’s voice is fond, and it makes Yixing’s chest hurt.

“I’m still sorry I wasn’t there for you, that I never bothered to dig and ask why you guys broke up.”

“Meh. I wouldn’t have told you then, and I’m only telling you know because you need to haul your stupid ass over there. It’s fine. It’s in the past. I’ve let go of it, okay? I have a beautiful boyfriend and I want you to get a guy who actually deserves you.”

“Aww,” Yixing coos, still sniffling. “You’re so sweet.”

Yifan grumbles, “Man, I was scared he forced you to have sex or something and that’s why you were calling. I can’t believe he didn’t know you were demi.”

“Uhh. About that.” Yixing feels himself go red. “I actually jumped his bones.”

“You what.”

“I what,” Yixing mocks, and thankfully Yifan ignores his childishness.

“Yixing, that’s big. Why are you even hesitating? That means you really like him, right?”

“I’m scared,” slips out of Yixing’s mouth, and he realizes it’s so true.

“Aw. I wish I could give you a hug. You’ll figure it out, you’re a big boy.”

“Oh, shut up. Okay, I should go back now. Talk to you later. And… thanks.”

“Any time.”

_____________________

There isn’t much time to talk first, turns out. Yixing’s parents have taken these next few days off of work too, to accommodate them and go on mini road trips. And they take every opportunity to embarrass the hell out of Yixing.

Finally, it’s their last night in town, and Yixing's parents insist on taking them out to dinner. On the way back, Yixing's father walks a few paces ahead with Kyungsoo, picking his brain about tile maintenance of all things, while Yixing's mother takes his arm and walks slowly enough that they’ll stay a few steps behind. “Kyungsoo seems like a very nice boy,” she says. “I’m glad you found him. You make each other so happy. I can see it, just from the way you look at him.”

Glancing at his mother, he’s shocked to see how relieved she does look. Tears fill his eyes and he sniffles. His mother really does want him to be happy… he forgets that when he’s complaining about her nagging. "Thank you, Mama, that means a lot."

“You better treat him right and tell him the truth," she warns, and Yixing jolts in surprise.

"What do you mean?" he tries, voice still wobbly.

This earns him a glare. "I don't think you've told him you love him, and it makes a difference." She taps his heart. "I know I haven't been the best role model for expressing your feelings, but you are better than this. I can see the way you dance around each other. Don't lose him."

Yixing swallows, and makes up his mind. “I won't, Mama.” Then he suddenly hugs her, saying, "I love you."

His mother rolls her eyes and shoves him off, saying, "Then visit more often you idiot son. And call once in a while."

_____________________

His parents call it an early night. Yixing pulls Kyungsoo back and tells his parents, "We'll continue on a night time walk, we'll be back soon."

"Stay in the lit areas," his mother yawns and his parents enter the house.

Yixing, after a moment's hesitation, takes Kyungsoo's hand and starts them walking. Kyungsoo's grip is also hesitant but he lets Yixing lace their fingers together. Holding Kyungsoo's hand on the sidewalks near his house, moonlight filtering through the trees, is steady and warm, just like what Yixing's heart feels for Kyungsoo. 

"There's a community garden nearby that I helped out with," Yixing says, voice clear but quiet in the sleeping neighborhood. "It was my sanctuary, where I could go do some work with the earth in this suburbia, away from my parents but not too far." Kyungsoo is quiet, listening. "I also came here at night to be away from expectations." Yixing laughs. "My parents thought it was useless until I started bringing home vegetables."

Kyungsoo laughs. "You demonstrated a return on interest even that young, how Asian of you," he says dryly, and Yixing whines though he really wants to kiss Kyungsoo. He's got a problem.

Yixing continues to talk about the memories of this garden, Kyungsoo asking follow-up questions or humming. Their comfortable conversation ends when Yixing unlocks the garden and brings them to the other side of the garden from the fountain of indecision: a bench tucked in the corner, with a trellis of nighttime flowers.

Kyungsoo whispers with a note of awe, "It's beautiful."

Yixing goes slightly red. "The nighttime blooming flowers were my idea, I'm glad they've been taken care of so well."

They sit and Yixing watches Kyungsoo look around, look at the garden and stare at the moon. After a few moments, Kyungsoo opens his mouth to say something. But when he catches Yixing's intense stare, the words seem to die in his mouth. "A penny for your thoughts?"

They're still holding hands. Yixing pulls on Kyungsoo's hand, and kisses him sweetly. When he pulls back, Kyungsoo is looking at him with wonder and something like yearning. It's so intense that Yixing wants to hide away, but at the same time he wants to bask in that adoration. 

Yixing mentally flings away the desire to run away - he has succumbed to it for too long. "I've fallen for you," Yixing says. "That's almost an understatement, I really, really like you and I… want this," Yixing raises their hands, "I want this to be real. If you'll have me."

Kyungsoo's eyes are widening even more than Yixing had thought possible, but then he lets out a ragged breath. His other hand comes up to cover his face and wow, Kyungsoo, stoic Kyungsoo is crying. "Kyungsoo!" Yixing says, distressed. "I am so sorry if I said something wrong, I—"

Kyungsoo cuts him off with a kiss, strong and demanding and Yixing can only gasp and let Kyungsoo's tongue in to dance. Climbing into Yixing's lap, Kyungsoo lets go of Yixing's hand in favor of winding his arms around Yixing's neck instead, tangling his hands in Yixing's hair.

When they draw back, Kyungsoo sniffles. "I'm sorry, you didn't say anything wrong. I'm just so happy, I…" Kyungsoo's voice trails off but he gazes into Yixing's eyes, one hand softly carding through Yixing's hair.

Yixing’s heart aches at the tears in Kyungsoo’s eyes, and whispers, "I’m sorry you’ve felt this way for so long and I’ve never noticed."

Kyungsoo laughs and it's watery. "Too long," he says, smiling. He's beautiful even like this, tear tracks down his face and still trying to smile to make Yixing not worry. Yixing rushes to pepper kisses over Kyungsoo's eyes, cheeks, to kiss away the tears slowly finding their way out. "Ah I'm sorry, I just… couldn't have hoped for better. In my wildest dreams. You really want me."

"Of course I do. I want to wake up next to you, I want to hold your hand everywhere, I…" Yixing pauses to kiss Kyungsoo on the nose, and then smirks. "I want to do things I'd rather not mention in this garden."

That earns him a punch from Kyungsoo before Kyungsoo is kissing him again in the way Yixing has gotten addicted to. Overwhelming, powerful, and loving, just like Kyungsoo. "Let's go home, shall we?" Kyungsoo mutters in his ear. "You can show me how quiet and good you can be, right?"

Yixing has never gotten home from the garden this fast, ever.

Their third time having sex is slow, loving, and quiet. The quiet is by necessity because Yixing's parents are sleeping down the hall but Yixing needs, no, wants to express how much he does love Kyungsoo.

The entire time, Kyungsoo whispers in Yixing's ear, driving him insane. "I'm so lucky." Thrust. "You're all mine." Thrust. "And I'm yours." Thrust. "Come for me, baby."

Yixing buries his face in Kyungsoo's bare shoulder and moans into it as he comes from Kyungsoo's firm strokes. Soon, warmth spills deep inside him as Kyungsoo comes too.

When Kyungsoo makes to pull out, Yixing tightens his legs around Kyungsoo's waist. "No. Wanna feel you inside me, want you to fuck me when you wake up hard," Yixing mumbles, and grins when he feels Kyungsoo's dick give a weak twitch inside him.

“We should work up to that,” Kyungsoo says, pulling out and getting up to clean them both off. When he’s done, Kyungsoo lays back down and tucks Yixing close. “Doesn’t that feel better?” Kyungsoo presses a kiss to Yixing’s forehead. “Good night.”

“Love you,” Yixing murmurs, already half-asleep. 

“Love you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed!! I somehow finished this while also doing kinktober. yeesh!!! some epilogue notes for you guys <3
> 
> after a few months of real dating, Kyungsoo officially moves out of krisbaek’s house (because he’s already sleeping over at Yixing’s all the time anyway).
> 
> krisbaek are really sad because Kyungsoo used to cook for them, but now Yixing’s house is just a place where everyone goes to get food now. including Yixing’s brat team of Sehun/Jongin/Yugyeom/Jungkook and Lu Han/Guan Xiaotong (who they all adore and instead of threatening her they threaten Lu Han with death if he hurts her)
> 
> when they’re dating laysoo do mostly the same things as they did when they were fake dating. Cooking, eating out, and an occasional wild night at a club X_X. Lots of movies, but Yixing usually falls asleep and tells Kyungsoo the movie was great LOL
> 
> they tell each other they love each other every night, at least

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments appreciated!!!  
you can yell at me on [Tumblr](https://lady-serendipity.tumblr.com/) and/or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ladyyserendipit)!


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